Mourinho gets it all wrong and still dismisses Red shift
But during the Old Trafford FA Cup semi-final, as had been the case in the pre-match build-up, their respective managers offered equally captivating entertainment.
The Liverpool celebrations were still ringing around the stadium on Saturday evening when Jose Mourinho launched his latest psychological offensive against a team many observers feel could stage a concerted bid for Chelsea’s Premiership title next season.
Mourinho dismissed such a notion out of hand. “I think in the Premiership, they have no chance,” said the Chelsea manager. “Because over 38 matches it is more difficult. In a knockout you can lose against a fourth division team.”
It was one of many such barbs from the hugely entertaining Portuguese manager: “I wish Liverpool luck in the qualifying game for the Champions League,” he retorted after declining to wish his conquerors well for the Cardiff Cup final next month. However, his comments hid a deeper issue at the heart of his team’s failure.
Mourinho, surprisingly, opted to play converted full-back Paulo Ferreira wide on the left of midfield instead of an orthodox wing option at Old Trafford, a move which Steven Gerrard, for one, admitted surprised and encouraged Liverpool.
Not until Joe Cole and Damien Duff were brought on around the hour mark did Chelsea finally appear capable of eating into a Liverpool lead established by John Arne Riise and Luis Garcia, an accomplishment they duly performed when Didier Drogba pounced on a Riise mistake to score with a 70th-minute header.
Perhaps predictably, Mourinho insisted he had made no error in opting for Ferreira but, in a more frank analysis, the Chelsea manager did concede that his team has taken a retrograde step this season from last season’s heights.
“I wouldn’t say we are better than last season, no,” said Mourinho. “To be better we have to be better psychologically and we didn’t improve psychologically. The motivation was bigger in the first season, the enthusiasm was bigger, the enjoyment from people not believing we could do it was bigger.
“This season was very easy from the beginning. By October or November the distance between us and the rest was very, very, very big. You need to be challenged from the beginning to feel pressure, to feel the need to improve, and we never felt that.
Despite the sour grapes aspect of Mourinho’s pronouncement, it does appear likely that Liverpool, winners of just two of 10 meetings between the sides over the past two seasons, may be in a position to provide the “exterior factor” which Chelsea seek.
Rafa Benitez’s team, who have knocked Chelsea out of last season’s Champions League and this season’s FA Cup, certainly appear unbowed by their rival’s league dominance and the psychological warfare waged by Mourinho. “He had a go at us? There’s a surprise!” grinned Liverpool captain Gerrard after Mourinho’s comments were repeated. “Maybe he should show us a little respect.”
“I was surprised by the things Mourinho said,” Benitez said. “Disappointed? No. I was doing my job before the game, planning to win, and now we are in the final.”
Mourinho was correct to assert that John Terry was harshly judged to have used a high boot in conceding the free-kick that led to Riise’s 20th minute goal but it was a lead for which Liverpool were good value and, given that he scored last season’s controversial European winner, it was perhaps inevitable that Garcia would score a superb second soon after the break.
Nor did the Chelsea manager shy from criticising appalling misses by Drogba, at 0-0, and Cole in the 94th minute. “You can’t miss big chances in big matches,” was his tacit verdict.
Yet, when the dust had finally settled upon one of the most engaging semi-finals of recent seasons, both managers could agree on one thing - all that mattered for this day was the fact Liverpool, not Chelsea, advanced to Cardiff.
As for the future? Hopefully, this rivalry is only just beginning.
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