10 March, 2008

Don Mourinho

Older ladies favourite Jose Mourinho has warned Chelsea that he will be gunning for his former club more than most if he faces them next season. The Portuguese maestro was unceremoniously sacked earlier this season by owner Roman Abramovich after the Russian billionaire was continually unimpressed by the workmanlike performances Mourinho was encouraging out of his Chelsea team. A clause in his severance package was that Mourinho would not legally be allowed to manage another English team for three years, so obviously that narrowed down the sides that might potentially interest him.

Mourinho is looking to return to football management next season though, and is apparently relishing the prospect of going up against his former employers in the Champions League, according to an interview hosted on the BBC sports site.

“I hope to play them next season in the Champions League,” Mourinho said. “If I play them in the Champions League, I want to go there and kill them - that's my message.”

So he’s pretty serious then. Much like a cuckolded lover, he added that he felt “nothing” for Chelsea successor Avram Grant, despite still holding the club itself dear: “I feel everything for the club, but not for him (Grant) personally. I still feel Chelsea is a part of me, I'll have Chelsea in my heart forever.”

Speculation is obviously rife as to Mourinho’s next job, with the major sides in Europe apparently battling it out behind closed doors for his signature. So will it be Real Madrid, Barcelona, AC Milan or Juventus that next plays host to the ‘special one’ and his theatrics? You can say what you want about his methods, but the sooner the man is back in football the better, things could get pretty interesting next season.