PSG and Chelsea FC are not set to meet in the UEFA Champions League until mid-February but Laurent Blanc is already trying to dismiss Jose Mourinho’s mindgames. Mourinho told the media before the draw that he preferred to face PSG in the knockout round because of the easy travel for the club and the supporters.
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Most of us would take those comments at face value if they came from any other manager but knowing Jose Mourinho there is always an ulterior motive for what he says. Every comment he makes and every time he speaks, it is measured and there is a purpose behind it and these comments are no different.
The comments Mourinho made already has Laurent Blanc transfixed and he addressed those comments. Blanc said, “did Mourinho win the psychological battle ? If he wins a point, it is because he’s playing a game. I have no game to play mind games with Jose. We know him, we know him very well. like that, you like his quotes, that’s it. He’s very strong in this aspect but not only that.”
He continued to discuss how Mourinho made those comments with full knowledge of the impact they may have. Blanc added, “he had done the maths as we did, I’m sure, and he knew the teams he could meet. He knows PSG was one of them and he thought: ‘I will come with my little quote.’ At the end of both games, we will be able to know if it was a good or a bad draw. The sure thing is that they are a great team. We know them well. We still have memories of last year. We remember that game. I think they are stronger this year.”
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Chelsea FC are indeed a stronger team this year but PSG have been excellent as well. They are playing at a high level and played Barcelona very tough in both of their group stage matches. What Jose Mourinho has done is shifted the conversation away from how good PSG or Chelsea is and make it about him and to an extent Blanc as well.
It is typical mindgames from Mourinho but this time around he started before the draw was even made. That could be because PSG was the only club the Blues could draw that he is actually concerned about. The other clubs like Bayer Leverkusen and Shakhtar Donetsk are not on the level of PSG or Chelsea and the ties would be relatively straightforward. So Mourinho prepared the media for the possibility of a draw with PSG and they took the bait and apparently so did Laurent Blanc.
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