Having won a few things in Spain, Chelsea FC boss Jose Mourinho could tell you a thing or two about the country and its top flight league.
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The Portuguese manager is about to have his third victory parade in London, having won the Premier League a few weeks ago. He made an easy job of it, but he believes that Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona would have a hard time winning the Premiership.
Mourinho won La Liga in 2012, with a record-breaking 100 points and 121 goals scored, but reveals that he didn’t enjoy his time with Los Blancos because of the league’s lack of a competitive edge. He claims that only three or four matches really challenged, while the rest were a breeze.
“I was in Spain, but I didn’t enjoy.” Mourinho says. “I didn’t enjoy it because I won a title with a record in Spain with 100 points and 121 goals, but we played only three or four matches all season. I lost a title with 92 points, but again we played only four or five matches in the season.”
“You feel the pressure that you have to win every match because if you don’t you are not champions. You have to win and win and win. But it is a big, big gap between the giants and the others.”
"-Jose MourinhoSource: Daily Mail"
Mourinho also believes that there is a major difference between the two leagues, and despite no English club making it to the final eight of the Champions League, he says that the Premier League is the best in the world.
He highlighted the unpredictability and uncertainty that he faced with every game in England, claiming that in other leagues, a manager can play ‘when resting’ — using his 4-2 FA Cup loss to Bradford City as an example.
“I think the difference between the two leagues is huge. Would they (Barcelona or Real Madrid) win the Premier League? Maybe yes. Maybe not.”
“In matches in other countries you can win matches when you are resting,’ Mourinho continued. ‘In Spain and in Italy, I won lots of matches resting. Where you can think, “what next?”. Where you can think which European game is coming, where you can rest players.”
“This season I rested a few players against Bradford and I lost against Bradford. And that is English football. You are winning 2-0 and if you concede a goal you know you are going to have hell for the last few minutes and you might draw 2-2 and lose two points.”
“This is the reality of the Premier League. You have no time. It’s not just about the number of matches, it’s the intensity. And it’s not just physical intensity, you feel the intensity mentally.”
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Now that the season is all but done and dusted, Mourinho and Chelsea can finally relax, and they have been doing so. Since winning the title at home in a match vs Crystal Palace, they have only been able to take one point from the following two matches.
They suffered a 3-0 defeat against West Brom on Monday, but that could be forgiven since everyone is already on holiday. Mourinho still found a way to poke fun at the top title contenders by blaming them for Chelsea’s lack of motivation.
“I can’t just blame the players, I have to blame myself. I also lost that salt and pepper you need during the week to work at a high level.”
“I think the top contenders are also guilty because they let us win the title so early.”
Good old Mourinho. He knows what to say for just about any situation.