Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, has claimed that the Blues’ Champions League triumph in 2012, was “not a consequence of great work”.
On Tuesday, the Stamford Bridge club come face to face with Roberto Di Matteo, the man who was their caretaker manager when they won the European trophy two years ago.
Although Chelsea finished sixth that season, they went on to clinch the double, after previously lifting the FA Cup. But Mourinho believes their run in the Champions League that year, shows the volatile nature of the competition.
“The Champions League, many, many times I say, is not a consequence of a great work,” the Portuguese told reporters.
“Sometimes it is not. You can win the Champions League in the worst season. You can finish fifth and win the Champions League. Right. Liverpool did, and Chelsea, too.
“A knockout competition is something that always has a big percentage of unpredictability.”
Mourinho, who has won the Champions League with Porto and Inter Milan, also insisted he was intent on creating his own history at Chelsea and not trying to emulate Di Matteo.
“I can only work to improve my team all the time, make a very good team like we are doing,” he added.
“Me working on the pitch, the club board working at other levels to make a great team like we did in 2004, ’05, ’06 and end with that Champions League.
“But there is nothing we can do [specifically] to win it and you cannot say that is the direction we go in.
“The history is the history that was on the Chelsea bench when Chelsea won the Champions League and Di Matteo is a historic name in this club. And my name is in the history of this club. A club is made of many, many names not one or two names, or one player or one manager.
“I made my history here and now I have the chance to make more history here, and he became Chelsea manager and made his history here.”
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