Jose banking on youth and experience...

CURRENT TEAM A BLEND OF HIS FORMER EURO WINNERS

JOSE Mourinho claims United are a blend of his two previous Champions League-winning teams.

And he says he will start to believe a hat-trick of European Cups is a possibility if his current class can overcome Sevilla.

Mourinho led Porto and Inter Milan to the summit of European football against the odds. Comparing a United side, who sit 16 points adrift of City in the Premier League, to his previous teams, he said: “I won with Porto when Porto was a very young team.

“An inexperienced team at this level with so many players playing in the Champions League for the first time in their careers.

“With Inter it was the opposite. It was a team with lots of players over 30, with great experience at a high level of football, but who were not successful until then.

“I think this squad is more in the middle of it. We have some players with previous experiences, some others without experience.”

While the FA Cup represents United’s best chance of a trophy this season, Mourinho believes victory against Sevilla in the last 16 will make his side genuine contenders – even in the face of competition from Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and City.

“I normally say Champions League dreams start around the quarter-finals and we are not through the last 16,” he said. “The last eight still looks a long way to go. When a team reaches the quarter- final then I think that is the moment where even the teams that are not favourites, which is our case, they realise anything is possible.

“I never thought I was going to win it with Inter or Porto.

“It’s when you reach the quarterfinal that you think something can happen. The dynamic can change, the normal tendencies of some clubs is that they are more ready to win it. But when you reach the quarter-final, that is when a team can feel anything can happen.

“This step of going from 16 to eight teams is a very important step.

“But I think for the moment we just have to focus on a very difficult opponent and in the first match of these two knockout games, a match that doesn’t decide anything but is very important.”

Sevilla coach Vincenzo Montella lauded Mourinho ahead of their showdown, claiming: “Mourinho was a pioneer when it comes to tactics in football.

“I have read many books and I think Mourinho is quite a good rival.”

He added: “I am really happy with the performance of my team.

“We have an excellent run of victories, although we still have room for improvement.”

I normally say Champions League dreams start around the quarter-finals

Jose Mourinho