Chelsea captain John Terry says the club's players are 'first and foremost' the reason for the Blues' poor start to the season.

The defending Premier League Champions currently sit in 15th place on the ladder, with just 11 points from their opening 11 matches.

Terry says the Stamford Bridge club's playing group are primarily at fault for the poor start, not under fire manager Jose Mourinho.

"First and foremost the players will stand up. I've not been good enough and performances haven't either," Terry said.

"What we've seen in the last two or three days, ridiculous stories about what's happening within the club and the dressing room. I can assure you the players are 100 per cent behind the manager.

"He's under pressure because of the way we're performing. He can do all the work he can in the training field and team meetings, but once we step over the white line it's on us. We know we need to be better, collectively, for this club and for him.

"He will take a lot of the responsibility on his shoulders, and that's unfair. It's on all of us collectively, not just on him."