José Mourinho, regarded by many as one of the best professional soccer coaches in the world, lost his job as Chelsea manager on Thursday.

Chelsea Football Club fired its famed 52-year-old Portuguese manager in the midst of disastrous season, which saw the former perennial contender at 16th place in the Premier League.

Chelsea released a statement on the matter, saying Mourinho and the club parted by "mutual consent."

"His three league titles, F.A. Cup, Community Shield and three League Cup wins over two spells make him the most successful manager in our 110-year history," read the statement. "But both José and the board agreed results have not been good enough this season and believe it is in the best interests of both parties to go our separate ways."

Despite winning the Premier League last season, Chelsea is currently sitting at 4-9-3, and is one point out of relegation zone. Many of the club's star players are underperforming, leading to home losses to below average teams such as Bournemouth, Crystal Palace and Southampton, The New York Times reports.

"I feel my work was betrayed," said Mourinho on Monday after what would be his last game with Chelsea, a 2-1 loss to Leicester City. "Last season I did an amazing job and I brought players to a level that is not their level."

Chelsea has remained an elite team since its acquisition by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich in 2003. He brought on Mourinho, who had recently led Portugal to win the Champions League in 2004, becoming the only team outside of England, Italy, Spain, or Germany, to take the title.

In 2005, Mourinho won Chelsea its first title in 50 years. However, he was dismissed in his fourth season due to tension with Abramovich.

Mourniho went on to claim two league titles and a Champions League with Inter Milan, and another league title with Real Madrid. In 2013, he was rehired by Chelsea.

Mourniho also had his fair share of controversy, ostracized by his colleagues for his gloating, including calling himself "the Special One," and other incidents that include poking Barcelona assistant coach Tito Vilanova in the eye. Still, it's expected he will be in high demand by many of Europe's top clubs.