Mourinho plays down Chelsea knowledge
Wednesday, February 24th, 2010
Inter Milan boss Jose Mourinho has refuted claims his knowledge of Chelsea gives him the upper hand in the huge Champions League meeting between the sides on Wednesday (Inter 7/4, Chelsea 13/8, the draw 21/10 in totesport’s match coupon).
Mourinho was the Chelsea manager between 2004 and 2007 and guided them to successive Premier League titles during his time at Stamford Bridge, but the Portuguese coach is now plotting against them in the last 16 Euro showdown.
The Inter boss will be well aware of Chelsea’s strengths and weaknesses (Didier Drgoba 5/1 to score first) but he denies his links with the Blues gives him an advantage over Carlo Ancelotti in the tie.
“I know Chelsea well but that doesn’t mean it’s any easier,” he said. “Sometimes it’s more difficult when you know so much about the team.
“If you don’t decide what’s the right information to give new players about old players, you can get into trouble.”
Chelsea will welcome back Frank Lampard, who has recovered from a virus, for the San Siro clash while defenders Alex and Juliano Belletti are also fit (Chelsea 7/2 half-time/full-time).
However, Ashley Cole, Yury Zhirkov, Jose Bosingwa, Michael Essien and Deco are all on the injured list.
Inter expect goalkeeper Julio Cesar to play despite being involved in a minor car crash, but Cristian Chivu and Davide Santon are both on the sidelines for the Serie A leaders.
Check out all of totesport’s big-match bets.
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