Mourinho left under a cloud but will return with head held high

REPORTS focused on the game, will not mind in the unlikely event that the Chelsea fans turn on him and will not celebrate if United score.

“To say I care [about the reaction] is not true,” he said. “When I go to a football match I am not focused on that. I am more focused on the game. I try to prepare myself for the match, so I cannot say that I care.

“What can I expect? I don’t know. They can think about me and remember our great relation and have a good reaction. They can look at me and say, ‘For 90 minutes he is Manchester United manager and he is playing against us, so he is not someone we like at this moment’.

“I know I was Chelsea’s most successful manager in their history. I did my job. They gave me their love and they gave me their support. That is the most important thing.

“If now I go there as United manager and if they decide to have a different approach, I will respect them.

“I played there with Inter and I tried to do my job. If you ask me if my team score a goal am I going to celebrate like a crazy kid? No. I have enough maturity to control the emotion. I have lots of respect.”

It will be a surprise if that respect is not mirrored tomorrow.