MOURINHO
Jose Mourinho conceded he returns to former club Chelsea
this weekend with his aura of invincibility there having been stripped away.
Mourinho possessed
a formidable record at Stamford Bridge, not losing a Premier League match there
until his second spell at Chelsea ,
a remarkable run that spanned 77 home games.
But last season's collapse, which saw Mourinho sacked by
Chelsea in December, saw that proud record crumble, with the Manchester United boss having owned up to
his failings.
Mourinho's fine record at Chelsea continues when he returned
there for the first time as an opposing boss with Inter Milan in 2010.
Inter won 1-0 in the return leg at Stamford Bridge to go
through 3-1 on aggregate and send Chelsea out of the Champions League.
On that occasion, Mourinho said he was “always lucky at the
Bridge”, but ahead of his return for the first time since his sacking, the
self-styled Special One has changed his tune.
“When I played there with Inter, I had never lost a match at
Stamford Bridge because I had that home record,” said Mourinho.
“Now I've lost a few matches at the Bridge. Last
season I lost two or three matches at the Bridge, so I cannot use the same
words, because now I've lost there.”
Mourinho said he had been preparing for the day when he
would have to to return to Chelsea and admitted he was ready for the
potentially toxic showdown with his former club.
“I knew that, working in England and staying in the
Premier League, that sooner or later I had to play against Chelsea and go to
Stamford Bridge,” said Mourinho. “The computer has decided it is to go now. And
here we go.”
Asked to assess Chelsea's start to the season under Antonio
Conte, Mourinho said: “I don’t have to analyse their start to the season.
“But you look to the table and you see where
they are. They're in a good position. So the start of the season cannot be bad
if they are where they are.”
No comments:
Post a Comment