Chelsea FC Transfer Rumours: Paul Pogba (And The Eiffel Tower) Too Expensive, Says Jose Mourinho
In a wide-ranging interview given from Chelsea FC’s training base in Montreal, boss Jose Mourinho touched upon many topics including his interest in Paul Pogba. What he said was amusing to say the least.
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The Blues are currently in Montreal, preparing for a string of three friendlies south of the border in the United States. In a break between training, Mourinho sat down to give his first proper interview since the end of last season. When pressed upon Chelsea rumoured strong interest in Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba, the manager was full of praise for the Frenchman.
‘He is one of the top players in the world. Pogba goes to any team and improves that team automatically. If he stays at Juventus, Juventus will be very strong again. If he goes somewhere else he will improve immediately a team.’ (via ESPNFC)
His words are certainly in line with what the public perception is regarding the Blues and Pogba. Speculation linking the two parties has been rife for months, to the extent that Oscar and Ramires were at one point linked with a move the other way in order to broker a deal.
However, Chelsea fans should not get too excited, as Mourinho went on to state that that player may be too expensive…I think.
‘I think everybody has an interest in Pogba. But there are things you can do and things you cannot do. I love the Eiffel Tower but I can’t have the Eiffel Tower in my garden. I can’t even have the Eiffel Tower of Las Vegas.’
I guess this is fair enough from the boss. Like you are taught as a child, you can’t always get what you want, not even a cheap rip-off verison, and that’s life. As much as Chelsea fans may want Pogba in the team, Mourinho’s knows how much he would be willing to spend on him and we should trust his judgement. He’s not The Special One for nothing, you know.
On top of this, Jose took a swipe at UEFA, and the Financial Fair Play rules which they relaxed this season. He also interpreted rivals’ big spending as a compliment to his team.
‘Football is like this – one season is financial fair play, the next is a way to dribble [past] the financial fair play. It doesn’t upset me…
‘I told the players that we are the same team and the others are not the same team. I cannot stop opponents to make an assault to the banks and spend millions and millions. I cannot stop that. I cannot stop [that] the others have a feeling that we are playing against the champions.’
He also mentioned that Chelsea’s transfer policy dictates that players are only brought in to replace outgoing ones, or if ‘somebody brings the perfect offer for Chelsea to accept‘.
This is quite a transformation from the club that freely spent gross amounts purely funded by Roman Abramovich during the mid-2000s, but perhaps it is a turn for the better. While the likes of Manchester City have owners that can apparently sustain such spending for the foreseeable future, disasters do happen. Just ask Malaga.
Furthermore, with Chelsea winning the double last season, more conservative or smart spending hasn’t seemingly hampered the club.
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With players such as Raheem Sterling being sold for a ridiculous £49million, there is no wonder how much Juve would hold out for a markedly better player. Chelsea are being run like a football club should be run in modern times and I would hate to see that change.
Having said that, it will be interesting to see how much Mourinho coughs up for John Stones…
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