Chelsea manager plays mind games before Sunday's derby by claiming the low expectations of Tottenham help them
Jose Mourinho does believe that Tottenham Hotspur are genuine title contenders, but pointed out before the teams meet on Sunday lunchtime at White Hart Lane that Spurs are in the fortunate position of being under “no pressure” to challenge.
Mourinho spoke at length about Tottenham at his press conference on Friday, detailing how Spurs have “great conditions” for success, how life is far easier for the north London club than it is for Chelsea. From a manager who operates under forensic examination, this was an attempt to put some of that pressure back on to Tottenham.
While the Chelsea manager is sometimes reluctant to talk about opponents before a game, he was happy to discuss Spurs yesterday, detailing why he thinks they are a genuine threat and why everything is set up for them to be one. He spoke warmly about his Tottenham counterpart and “friend” Mauricio Pochettino, but insisted he was no miracle worker.
“When I watch them play, it is not a surprise for me,” Mourinho said of Tottenham’s nascent title challenge. “If they said that they were fighting for the title, I would not laugh. I would accept it, because the team is very good, the manager is very good, the players are good. Good stability, playing well, a very, very good team.”
There was little doubt for Mourinho that Spurs’ challenge would soon lead them to their first trophy since 2008, or back into the Champions League for the first time since 2011.
“This season they have an ever better team than last season,” he said. “I can imagine, with the stability they are showing, that sooner or later – I think sooner – they will be there, winning trophies or in a Champions League position, for sure.”
Then there were positive words for Pochettino, a young coach who has been close to Mourinho since he started out at Espanyol, and who sought his advice when first offered the chance to work in England with Southampton nearly three years ago.
John Terry is a doubt for Chelsea after being carried off with an ankle injury on Tuesday
“We respect each other, we’ve known each other for a long time, we are friends,” Mourinho said. “We have good feelings for each other. It’s the kind of match where the fourth official will have a peaceful time because we are very happy to be seated almost together.”
Mourinho certainly does not talk about every other manager this way. And yet he qualified all of this praise by reminding everyone that Spurs are in a very enviable position, in terms of their players, the running of the club and, most importantly, the lack of pressure compared to the relentless focus that Chelsea are under.
“They have great conditions to do the magnificent work they are doing,” the Portuguese said. “The squad is very good and has a lot of potential. They keep the players they want to keep. They bring the right players in. No pressure on them, like there is on the other four or five top teams, to reach important positions.”
“Nobody speaks about them as title contenders like they speak about [Manchester] City, United, this and that. They lose a couple of matches and nothing happens. They are in the Europa League, in the group phase, and no one cares about that at that stage.”
Mourinho pointed to his second job in management back in Portugal, at Uniao de Leiria, when he was 38 years old, as an example of what can be achieved by a talented young manager at a smaller club freed from the weight of expectation. This, he said, allowed him to pick young players without fearing unduly about results. Leiria are not quite the same size as Tottenham, their best finish was fifth under Mourinho, but the implication was clear.
“When I was in a team whose objectives were not to be relegated, in December [2001] we were third and it was fantastic,” Mourinho said. “You could go into every match after that knowing you can lose. You can bring in young players without problems, even if they’re not ready. You play the top teams and if you win you’re a hero. If not, it’s something very natural. I enjoyed it.”
All of which served to remind Pochettino and Tottenham that their success this season should be kept in context, and if they make it into the elite of the English game, playing in finals and in the Champions League, then their life will get harder. “They have good conditions and no pressure,” he said, “to do magnificent work.”
This sounded like traditional Mourinho expectation-management, trying to turn Pochettino’s team into the favourites, with the onus to win tomorrow’s game. Of course, Spurs are 10 points and 10 places ahead of Chelsea in the Premier League table. They have lost once in the league this season, on the opening day. Since then Chelsea have lost seven times.
It is very natural that Spurs should be favourites. 2015 has been a very good year for Tottenham and the highlights have been three big rousing home wins over superior opposition. They have beaten Manchester City in September and Arsenal in February but it all started with Chelsea, at White Hart Lane, on New Year’s Day.
Spurs would love to do that again tomorrow, but the big question is whether they can summon the same physical and motivational intensity that beat Chelsea 5-3 having only arrived back from Europa League duty in Azerbaijan at 4am yesterday morning. Eight players who started on Thursday are likely to start tomorrow, with only Danny Rose, Kyle Walker and Mousa Dembélé coming in fresh.
Mourinho has little sympathy for Pochettino, having played in Israel on Tuesday night, and with John Terry and Ramires both doubts.
The last time these two teams met was at Wembley in March, when Chelsea won 2-0 to take the Capital One Cup. Mourinho went out of his way that day to praise Pochettino. “I was so happy with the victory, but I could feel a bit of time to think about him and give him a nice word,” he said yesterday. “Mauricio is still waiting for his first title as manager, so I could feel he was very disappointed.” He may not have to wait for much longer, if what Mourinho says is right.
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