Mourinho has
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LONDON: Less than 12 months since his second spell as Chelsea manager ended amid on-pitch turmoil and bitter off-pitch recrimination, Jose Mourinho returns to Stamford Bridge with Manchester United on Sunday.
With three Premier League titles, three League Cups and one FA Cup won across his two stints in west London, Mourinho is the most successful manager in Chelsea’s history.
The love affair ended last December after nine league defeats and what technical director Michael Emenalo termed “palpable discord” between manager and players, but Mourinho prefers to remember the good times.
“Some managers, when they leave clubs, they like to — I don’t know if you have the same saying in England — wash their dirty clothes,” he said.
“It means speak about what happened and go back and speak and speak and speak. I’m not (like) that. I leave the clubs and I leave with a very good feeling, a feeling of: I did everything to succeed, I gave everything to the club and I don’t like to go back and speak, especially about the bad things.
“I keep the good things and in Chelsea (there were) so many good things in terms of results, in terms of friends that I have for life, an amazing empathy with the supporters. The supporters didn’t change their relation with me because last season was a couple of months with bad results. So I keep all these good memories.”
Mourinho previously returned to the Bridge as an opposition manager in March 2010, when his Inter Milan side won 1-0 to complete a 3-1 aggregate victory in the Champions League round of 16. Inter finished the season as European champions.
United have gone six games unbeaten and after a creditable 0-0 draw at in-form Liverpool on Monday, they crushed Fenerbahce 4-1 at home on Thursday.
Dubbed ‘The Special One’ in his first spell at the club from 2004 to 2007, Mourinho quickly became a fan favourite because of his personality and returned to a rapturous reception when he rejoined in 2013.
FA Cup (2006–07)
League Cups (2004–05, 2006–07, 2014–15)
Community Shield (2005)
Although it was termed a split by mutual consent, there was little doubt that Mourinho was blamed for
Chelsea losing nine of 16 matches at the start of the 2015-16 season.
The only time Mourinho visited Stamford Bridge with an away team was in the 2009-10 Champions League round of 16 when his Inter Milan beat Chelsea 1-0 en route to becoming champions.
He has come under pressure for assembling an expensive team that hasn’t gelled together. It hasn’t helped that Wayne Rooney and Paul Pogba (in pic) have constantly been pulled up for underperforming.
Diego Costa (left) has been prolific in front of the goal and leads the Premier League’s goal-scoring charts with seven goals in eight appearances. CHELSEA WON PLAYED Manchester United MAN UNITED WON
(in pic) insists mental strength is needed as much as ability in order to come away with victory at Chelsea in Sunday’s Premier League clash. “You never know how the game is going to be until you get out there but I think it’s important we get into the game and start fast,” Rashford told the club’s website. “That’s what we did against Liverpool - we got into their faces and showed we weren’t going to be pushed around, and we need to go there with a similar attitude. The bigger the games are, the better for us.” The 18-year-old Rashford feels United must not allow Antonio Conte’s side time and space at Stamford Bridge. Marouane Fellaini