Mourinho plots Inter progress on special return
Reuters - Monday 15 March 2010, 02:00
LONDON - Jose Mourinho, the
self-confessed Special One, returns to Stamford Bridge on
Tuesday plotting the Champions League downfall of the club he
admits is still close to his heart.
"I will be there with my heart fully on either side. That's
what a professional does," Mourinho, whose Inter Milan side will
be protecting a 2-1 first leg lead in the last-16 clash against
Chelsea, told UEFA.com. "I don't hide that Chelsea are a very
important part of my life."
NEWS: Ancelotti takes sting out of Mourinho return
Chelsea's second leg with Inter on Tuesday is the most
intriguing of the week's clashes which also include reigning
champions Barcelona at home to Stuttgart on Wednesday following
a 1-1 draw in the first leg in Germany.
The Catalans warmed up with a 3-0 victory over Valencia on
Sunday in which Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick.
Sevilla take on CSKA Moscow on Tuesday, also level at 1-1,
while French champions Bordeaux will be favourites to reach the
quarter-finals for the first time having won 1-0 in Greece
against Olympiakos.
All eyes will be on Mourinho, however, as the charismatic
Portuguese takes his place in the visitors dug-out at Stamford
Bridge - just metres away from the seat where he orchestrated
the greatest chapter in Chelsea's history.
"The good thing is that I don't have far to walk," he said.
"From the dressing room to the bench is five metres. I don't
have to cross the stadium, I don't have to feel the emotions
from the crowd. I will just sit there and play my game."
Mourinho is assured a great reception by the fans who will
be forever grateful for the two Premier League titles, two
League Cups and one FA Cup he won in three seasons before his
sudden departure in 2007.
But the sentimentality will end once the whistle blows.
Mourinho, who got his hands on the trophy with Porto in
2004, knows how desperate Chelsea are to land Europe's biggest
club prize, having twice reached the semi-finals under him and
losing to Manchester United on penalties in the final led by his
successor Avram Grant.
FIERCE RIVALS
Carlo Ancelotti, the latest coach entrusted with the task by
owner Roman Abramovich, knows what it takes to win the Champions
League, having done it twice with Inter's fierce rivals Milan.
Like most of the 40,000 fans wedged into Stamford Bridge on
Tuesday, Ancelotti will know that Inter pose a serious threat
despite stuttering domestic form simply because of who is in
charge of picking the team.
Many of the Chelsea squad, including the likes of Frank
Lampard and Didier Drogba, still hold Mourinho in high regard
and Ancelotti knows he might be left in the shade a little
before the whistle blows.
"Mourinho deserves to have a good reception because he did a
fantastic job," says Ancelotti told Chelsea's website. "Together
with Roman he put a team into the best position in the world.
"I just hope that in the future, in a very long time, when I
come back to Chelsea, I'll have this same reception."
A Champions League triumph would guarantee that but there is
much hard work ahead, starting with overturning Inter's lead.
"I don't think we have to score early," Ancelotti said. "We
need to play well, in a game with balance, because then we can
still score in the last minute of the game.
"We want to start the game well and play well but we don't
need a goal straight away."
Inter striker Samuel Eto'o has been in patchy form since his
July swap deal with Barcelona's Zlatan Ibrahimovic but is still
likely to start alongside Diego Milito.
Chelsea's biggest worry is in the goalkeeping department
with Petr Cech and Hilario both injured, although Ross Turnbull
impressed on his league debut on Saturday when Drogba warmed up
with two goals in a 4-1 defeat of West Ham United.
Inter's preparations were less impressive, losing 3-1 to
Catania on Friday.
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