Jose
Mourinho believes Paris St Germain are favourites for tonight's Champions
League quarter-final first leg against Chelsea because of their renowned
forward line - a statement which demonstrated further his dissatisfaction with
his own strike-force.
Mourinho
has previously on occasions revealed his team on the eve of matches, but
declined to do so ahead of the Parc des Princes clash, screwing up a piece of
paper theatrically after suggesting the UEFA interpreter sitting alongside him
had guessed the Chelsea line-up correctly.#
He
had been prepared to name his goalkeeper and defence, but no more.
It
was metaphoric, for all season Mourinho has bemoaned the quality of his
strike-force.
Again,
following last Saturday's loss at Crystal Palace, which saw him concede defeat
in the Premier League title race, the Blues boss outlined his intention to
overhaul his forward line this summer.
As
if to illustrate Chelsea are comparative paupers to PSG's princes, Mourinho
listed the men he considers to be the leading forwards in Europe, three of whom
play for the Parisiens.
Mourinho
said: "It's a team full of fantastic strikers and goalscorers and that is
what really makes the difference in this level.
"You
look to the teams in the top eight at this moment, all of them good teams, good
structures, with a certain philosophy, but after that you go and you see
(Barcelona's Lionel) Messi, (Real Madrid's Cristiano) Ronaldo, (Borussia
Dortmund's Robert) Lewandowski, (Atletico Madrid's) Diego Costa, (Zlatan)
Ibrahimovic, (Edison) Cavani, (Ezequiel) Lavezzi. They (PSG) have lots of
them."
Fernando
Torres is likely to start up front for Chelsea as Samuel Eto'o (hamstring) did not
travel and Demba Ba has been used sparingly this season.
What
Mourinho would give to have a player of the calibre of Ibrahimovic, who he
coached for one season at Inter Milan and who will be in opposition on
Wednesday night, content that he will never play in the Premier League.
Ibrahimovic
has scored 10 goals in seven Champions League games this season.
"The
only time we disagreed it was obvious, because I wanted him to stay at Inter
and he wanted to leave for Barcelona." - Jose Mourinho
Mourinho,
a Champions League winner with Porto in 2004 and Inter Milan in 2010, said:
"During one year the relationship was phenomenal.
"The
only time we disagreed it was obvious, because I wanted him to stay at Inter
and he wanted to leave for Barcelona."
Ibrahimovic
earlier indicated he will end his career without ever playing in the Premier
League.
Mourinho
said: "I think it's a pity for him. His career is so rich and so full of
success that I think he can be considered as one of the greatest players, even
if he never played in the Premier League."
Ibrahimovic
insisted PSG would be his final big contract - and his last chance to win the
European Cup, a glaring omission on his distinguished CV.
"To
win it I will have to win it with Paris," said Ibrahimovic, who is under
contract at the Parc des Princes until 2016.
"It's
impossible to get me to England. The day I stop with football it will not be
that I look back and I say to myself: 'Maybe I should've played in England.'
"I
made stories in other countries. It's nothing that I regret."
It
may be Ibrahimovic is joined in Paris by Eden Hazard, with PSG boss Laurent
Blanc continuing the courtship of the Belgian by expressing admiration.
"He's
still very young, he has a lot of room for development and I foresee a very
bright future," Blanc said.
Culled
from RTE
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