Jose Mourinho has a habit of self sabotaging good things. For once, Chelsea should take advantage with a needed swap deal.
Something about Jose Mourinho broke in Madrid. It is unclear as to what exactly was the catalyst, but it happened sometime during his last season at Real Madrid amidst rumors of a locker room torn in two.
He wanted a return to England, that much was clear. The exact desired destination is still up for debate, but he returned to Chelsea. There, he seemed happier for the first two seasons, but it came at the cost of Juan Mata, Romelu Lukaku, Kevin De Bruyne, and Mohammed Salah. They had no place in Mourinho’s love story, so they were sent away. Then, of course, everything crumbled in 2015/2016.
There is a sense that Mourinho took the Manchester United job more out of spite than desire. Regardless, he has brought United closer to the Sir Alex Ferguson years without actually reaching that pinnacle. This summer, he has been in full self sabotage mode. And for once, Chelsea should take advantage of Mourinho’s weaknesses.
Mourinho has spent this preseason mopping and whining at about every turn. Paul Pogba had a good World Cup? He should give his best for United too, implying that he has not previously. Luke Shaw wants more minutes? He should try harder when given his one chance per season. Why can United not win during preseason? They have no players!
Rinse and repeat until the words stopping meaning anything. So far, United’s chief executive Ed Woodward has bent over backwards to keep Mourinho happy. The Henrikh Mkhitaryan/Alexis Sanchez swap is a clear indication of that. Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Nemanja Matic were also clear Mourinho wish list buys.
This is where Chelsea comes into play. Mourinho has no desire to use Anthony Martial. Despite the Frenchman generally being excellent whenever he plays, Mourinho has preferred pretty much anyone else over him. Now, Mourinho wants a former player to come in and push Martial even further down the depth chart. Mourinho wants Willian.
Chelsea does not necessarily need a right winger for qualities sake. But they do need to make the position younger. Both Willian and Pedro are on the upper end of age. The long term success of Chelsea would likely benefit from replacing one with someone younger (either as a starter or a bench player to be groomed into the role). Mourinho wants Willian, he does not want Martial. The writing is on the wall for Chelsea.
The Blues must take advantage of this Mourinho self sabotage. Let him have Willian back and take Martial off his hands in the exchange. A manager like Maurizio Sarri could work wonders with a player like Martial. Mourinho would get the player he wants and would likely start him. That should be fine by Chelsea, as Willian is likely to start his downfall sooner rather than later. The entire optics of the deal benefit Chelsea while making Mourinho believe he won the deal.
It is a rare thing for Chelsea to be on the right end of a Mourinho self sabotage. With Willian’s Barcelona escape route cut off, the clear choice is to make the swap happen. It will take some convincing on Woodward’s part, but this is a deal the Blues need to make happen.