Chelsea Manager Jose Mourinho Bemoans Premier League Pressure

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has resumed the psychological jousting between himself and Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger by launching a thinly veiled attack on the time afforded to the Frenchman during his spell without winning a major trophy.

The Gunners were on the brink of entering a 10<sup>th year without silverware before winning last season's FA Cup with an extra-time win over Hull City at Wembley; the first major trophy won by the club since 2005.

Arsenal's board provided Wenger with unprecedented support during the nine years without success, at odds with the modern football landscape which sees many managerial changes every season.

Mourinho himself left Chelsea after only winning the FA Cup in the final full season of his first spell at Stamford Bridge before his return produced the first complete trophy-less campaign of his career.

After signing Diego Costa, Cesc Fabregas, Filipe Luis and Didier Drogba during the summer transfer window, and welcoming Kurt Zouma and Thibaut Courtois back from respective loan spells, Chelsea have been installed as pre-season title favourites ahead of the opening weekend of the season.

And Mourinho has bemoaned the pressure he faces this season despite his enviable record with FC Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan and Real Madrid.

Some, they have 10 years to win something," Mourinho said. "I have only two.

"I am not a very intelligent guy to choose teams," he added. "Because I like to work and build and I don't like easy jobs. I don't like to get clubs worked by other managers before me. I don't like to arrive on time to collect the fruits of their labours.

"I came to Chelsea in a moment when one team was over. I came to a league where four, five, six teams are competing for the title. I am not good at choosing my jobs or I am good because I choose what I really love.

"This is the second year of a project and I am so happy with that. At the end of the season the boss, the supporters and more importantly my owner and my board they will judge my work too."

Though Mourinho does not refer to Wenger by name, the sentiment is most likely directed partially at the Arsenal manager who he labelled a "specialist in failure" during the 2013/14 campaign.

Chelsea face Arsenal for the first time this season at Stamford Bridge on 5 October.

The primary concern for Mourinho ahead of the new season regards who will start the term as his No.1 goalkeeper, with Petr Cech and the returning Courtois vying to begin the campaign against Burnley on Monday.

While Cech has been unchanged as Chelsea's No.1 goalkeeper since joining the club in 2004, Courtois has enjoyed a fruitful three-year loan spell at Atletico Madrid where he has won the La Liga title and the Europa League as well as featured in last season's Champions League final.

Courtois is expected to be handed the No.1 jersey for the first part of the season, leading to rumours regarding Cech's future in west London.

However, Mourinho has opened the door for the goalkeeper he omits from the first team, admitting he could rotate both players throughout the campaign.

"My number one is my number one [for all competitions]," he explained.

"Obviously not forever because I can not kill competition. I cannot close the door for someone to get into the team and I can not give any player, even a goalkeeper, guarantees that he is my first choice forever if he doesn't perform.

"Obviously you cannot change a goalkeeper because of a mistake but you can change a goalkeeper if he makes five mistakes so what is my first choice today may not be my first choice tomorrow because it depends on performance.

"If the goalkeeper gives stability and I don't feel a reason to change, I don't do 'you are the goalkeeper for this competition, you are the keeper in that competition'.

"I must support the keeper who is not first choice, and supporting him is not to give him a Capital [One] Cup game. Supporting him is giving him my trust when no one is expecting it.

"The best way to show a player is you trust him is to play him when no-one expects and with these two goalkeepers I can do that."