Terry 'deserves' final place, says Mourinho

Terry 'deserves' final place, says Mourinho - The Champions League "owes something" to Chelsea captain John Terry due to the previous disappointments that he has endured in the competition, according to manager Jose Mourinho.

Terry, 33, has been passed fit to play in the second leg of Chelsea's semi-final at home to Atletico Madrid on Wednesday after limping off with an ankle injury in last week's first leg, which ended in a 0-0 draw.

Mourinho initially ruled Terry out until at least the final, which takes place in Lisbon on May 24, but his return to fitness suggests that his luck in the tournament may be beginning to turn.

Terry 'deserves' final place, says Mourinho

Terry could have given Chelsea their first ever Champions League trophy in the 2008 final against Manchester United in Moscow, only to slip as he took a spot-kick in the penalty shootout, sending the ball wide.

A subsequent failed attempt by Nicolas Anelka gave United the trophy and although Chelsea prevailed on penalties in the final against Bayern Munich four years later, Terry did not play due to suspension.

He was also banned for last season's Europa League final success against Benfica, although, as he had done in 2012, he received the trophy in his full kit alongside his teammates.

Results of the Champions League semi-final match on Tuesday (AFP Photo/)

"I think the Champions League owes him something," Mourinho said during Tuesday's pre-match press conference.

"I think he deserves more than the Champions League has given to him till now. He lost a few semi-finals in special circumstances. He lost the final also in special circumstances.

"He won a final, also in special circumstances, because he couldn't play the final."

- No England U-turn -

Terry seemed to be getting eased out at Stamford Bridge under former interim manager Rafael Benitez, but he has been rejuvenated since Mourinho's return last year, marshalling the meanest defence in the Premier League.

Atletico Madrid's David Villa (R) trains at Stamford Bridge in London on April 29, 2014, on the eve of the team's Champions League semi-final second-leg match against Chelsea (AFP Photo/Glyn Kirk)

"My captain is playing at the same level as when I left Chelsea in 2007-08," Mourinho added.

"Six or seven years later, he is playing at his best level. It's fair to say that. It's also fair to say that the people that surround him are playing also fantastic.

"I think his partnership with (Gary) Cahill is fantastic and people that work together in the same areas, they are doing a fantastic job.

"I'm really happy to see a player like him, six or seven years later, to be back to the same level."

Terry's displays have prompted calls for him to return to the England fold, 19 months after he retired from international football following the Football Association's decision to strip him of the captaincy over allegations he had racially abused Queens Park Rangers' Anton Ferdinand.

However, despite the apparent lure of a potential place in manager Roy Hodgson's squad for this year's World Cup in Brazil, Terry said that he had no intention of reversing his decision.

"For me, 100 percent, I'm going to be on my holidays in the summer, I'm going to be nowhere else," he said.

"I've made that very clear. My thoughts are very strong on that. Maybe people don't realise how strong. I certainly wish the England side and Roy the very best." ( AFP )

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Fernando Torres never hides : Jose Mourinho

Fernando Torres never hides - Jose Mourinho says Fernando Torres won't "hide" against former club Atletico Madrid during Chelsea's Champions League semifinal.

The Spaniard has fallen down the pecking order at Stamford Bridge but is in line to face the Liga leaders in Tuesday's first leg clash after Samuel Eto'o did not travel with the squad because of a knee injury.

Jose Mourinho: Fernando Torres never hides

Torres came though the youth ranks at the Vicente Calderon, scoring 91 goals during seven seasons in the first team before joining Liverpool in 2007, but Mourinho is not concerned by his striker's state of mind ahead of the fixture.

"Playing in the Champions League is a big motivation for every player. Everyone wants to play. Those chosen are happy those who aren't, are not," he told reporters. "I am not saying that Fernando Torres will start, I am saying that he never hides. We feel that every day. He is a real Atletico supporter, I would say a big one. We talk about Spanish football every day.

"He is a professional. I have no doubts that the minutes he will be on the pitch tomorrow he will do everything for Chelsea given the professional that he is."

Mourinho also refuted claims that Atletico Madrid counterpart Diego Simeone is a superior coach to him.

"I don't agree," he said. "It is difficult to compare coaches; in fact it is not fair to do so.

"It is not fair to compare someone with 15 years of experience as a coach to one with less than that. It is something that I don't like to do."

After suffering semifinal defeats to Liverpool during his first spell in charge of Chelsea, Mourinho insists those disappointments do not provide extra motivation.

"I have no unfinished business with Chelsea in in the Champions League," he said. "I did my best. I always do my best. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.

"In one semifinal we lost on penalties and in the other we lost because of a goal that wasn't a goal [a reference to a shot from Luis Garcia that was adjudged to have crossed the line], but that's football." ( goal.com )

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Pellegrini turns on ref as City lose to Barca in Champions League

Pellegrini turns on ref as City lose to Barca in Champions League - Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini risks a UEFA sanction after launching a scathing attack on the match referee after his side's 2-0 loss to Barcelona in the Champions League.

Barcelona took charge of the last 16 tie thanks to a second-half penalty from Lionel Messi and a late Dani Alves strike at the Etihad Stadium in Tuesday's first leg, and Pellegrini blamed match official Jonas Eriksson for his side's defeat.

In a wide-ranging attack, Pellegrini accused Eriksson of making two mistakes over the penalty decision and even questioned why a Swedish official had been given control of the game.

He also said that Eriksson should not have been in charge because he had been criticised by Barcelona following his performance in their 0-0 draw at AC Milan in the quarter-finals of the 2011-12 competition.

Eriksson sent off City defender Martin Demichelis for bringing down Messi in the incident that yielded the 54th-minute penalty and Pellegrini said: "I think that the referee decided the game.

"Before the penalty there was the foul on (Jesus) Navas, when he (Eriksson) was three metres from the player, so he saw it without any problem.

Manchester City's Belgian defender Vincent Kompany (2nd R) reacts after Barcelona's goalkeeper Victor Valdes makes a save near his line at The Etihad Stadium in Manchester, northwest England on February 18, 2014 (AFP Photo/Paul Ellis)

"From the beginning I felt that the referee was not impartial to both teams. The penalty on Martin Demichelis was not a penalty -- it was outside the box."

Asked why he had spoken to Eriksson at the final whistle, Pellegrini replied: "Just to tell him that he had decided the game. He must be very happy, because he decided the game."

The Chilean added: "He didn't have any control of the game. He decided for Barcelona from the beginning until the end.

"I think it was not a good idea to put a referee from Sweden in such an important match and a referee that made such important mistakes against Barcelona (in an earlier match)."

When he was asked to explain his reservations about Eriksson's nationality, Pellegrini said: "I think there are more important football (nations) than Sweden in Europe.

Barcelona's Argentinian forward Lionel Messi celebrates after scoring from a penalty kick at The Etihad Stadium in Manchester, on February 18, 2014 (AFP Photo/Paul Ellis)

"It was a big game with two important teams. I think maybe in that kind of game, you need a referee with more experience.

"I think the best (biggest) mistake was to put a referee that damaged Barcelona in the stage of group (sic).

"This referee whistled the Barcelona-Milan game and he made an important error against Barcelona. Today he arranged (atoned for it)."

With Pellegrini preoccupied by his gripes about Eriksson's performance, it was left to captain Vincent Kompany to vow that City had not given up on the tie.

"If the tempo was in this game, it would have been to our advantage," he told ITV.

Barcelona's Argentinian forward Lionel Messi's successfully takes a penalty kick at The Etihad Stadium in Manchester, northwest England on February 18, 2014 (AFP Photo/Paul Ellis)

"If the game is the same as today, and we manage to stay away from some fouls, we have got a chance."

Barcelona manager Gerardo Martino felt that the outcome of the game was "fair", but he warned against complacency ahead of the second leg at Camp Nou on March 12.

"I'm not necessarily confident (about going through), but it's true that we've done a good game in the away leg," he said.

"We just have to repeat the same performance."

Media focus prior to the game had centred on the extent to which Barcelona have lost their mantle in the light of their 7-0 demolition by eventual champions Bayern Munich in last season's semi-finals.

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho described Martino's side "as the worst Barcelona of many, many years" and Barca midfielder Cesc Fabregas said that he and his team-mates were pleased to have silenced their critics.

"We had a point to prove, and we did it very well," he told ITV.

"Some people were talking a bit too much before the game and now they have to shut up for a few days." (AFP)

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Ronaldo's Real double foils fighting Galatasaray

Ronaldo's Real double foils fighting Galatasaray - Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice as Real Madrid, aiming to become kings of Europe for the 10th time, foiled a dramatic fightback by Galatasaray on Tuesday to reach the Champions League semi-finals.

Ronaldo, top scorer in the competition, took his goal tally for the season to 11 to make sure that Jose Mourinho's side went through to the last four 5-3 on aggregate despite losing the second leg 3-2 in Istanbul.

Mourinho praised the passionate support generated by the home crowd and the spirit of the Galatasaray players.

Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo (top) jumps over Galatasaray's Selcuk Inan during their Champions League quarter-final second leg soccer match in Istanbul April 9, 2013. REUTERS/Murad Sezer

"We always want to play in an atmosphere like the one in the stadium tonight," he told reporters. "I don't think our players were affected by it but the Turkish players were really affected.

"They used the atmosphere in the second half and played a fantastic match. They were knocked out but if only all clubs would go out in the same fashion - they put their heart and pride into it."

Real went ahead on the night when Ronaldo slid the ball in from two metres following a low cross from the right by Sami Khedira after seven minutes.

Emmanuel Eboue then galvanised Galatasaray into action with a piledriver of an equaliser from the edge of the area in the 57th minute.

Wesley Sneijder made amends for a glaring miss moments earlier when he added a second goal for Galatasaray by sending the ball between the legs of Real defender Raphael Varane before supplying a neat finish.

Didier Drogba, Chelsea's hero in last year's final, then sent the noisy crowd into raptures with a delightful back heel following a cross by substitute Nordin Amrabat.

ARBELOA DISMISSAL

Real substitute Alvaro Arbeloa was sent off in the closing stages for a second caution but Ronaldo settled his team's nerves by adding his second goal in stoppage time after good work by Karim Benzema.

The Madrid team, who romped to a 3-0 win in the first leg at the Bernabeu, were in complete command after Ronaldo's seventh-minute goal in Istanbul.

The Portuguese almost doubled the lead with a long-range drive that keeper Fernando Muslera did well to stop.

Real winger Angel Di Maria also missed an excellent opportunity after 24 minutes when a deft back-heel from Ronaldo sent him through on goal and Muslera kept the ball out with an instinctive save.

Despite the raucous support of the home fans, Galatasaray were unable to make much of an impression early on.

It was only in the latter stages of the first half the hosts began to exert any meaningful pressure.

Diego Lopez saved well when Sneijder fired in a shot from the edge of the area in the 38th minute and soon after Drogba just failed to latch on to a through ball that would have put him clear.

Umut Bulut then had another effort from the edge of the area that flew over the bar.

At the start of the second half nine-times European champions Real appeared content to sit on their lead but Eboue's goal transformed the atmosphere and it sparked a period of sustained pressure from the home team.

Sneijder dragged his shot well wide when he was unmarked eight metres out before the Dutch international struck Galatasaray's second goal.

An upset looked possible when Drogba made it 3-1 on the night but Ronaldo had the last laugh.

Coach Fatih Terim said he was delighted with the home team's second-half fightback.

"I gave my word to the fans that whether we won or lost, it would be with a Galatasaray team they could be proud of," he explained.

"Our fans were also magnificent. There was a fantastic atmosphere and when they enjoy the game, we do too." ( Reuters )

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Mourinho relishing war of egos with sidelined Casillas

Mourinho relishing war of egos with sidelined Casillas - There are two lines of questioning that are rolled out before Jose Mourinho at every press conference and interview: which club will you be managing next season, and what game are you playing with Iker Casillas?

The Portuguese's answers to the former are ever more cryptic; his responses to the latter are ever more juvenile.

Last evening, Mourinho decided to respond to both questions at the same time, in one rambling answer that resembled a stream of consciousness.

"I want to come back to Inter, but I will not coach them next year. They won’t be my team next year," he told Sky Italia. "Casillas? If Diego Lopez keeps on playing like this, he will be the regular instead of Casillas. The team always come first."

Lopez spent most of the quarter-final first leg against Galatasaray pacing the edge of his penalty area and flapping unconvincingly at occasional balls into the box - it was hardly a performance that merited particular post-match praise. This was more about Mourinho extolling Lopez's virtues in terms of the selfless team ethic he so clearly believes his more illustrious team-mate lacks.

Casillas is the only player currently at the Bernabeu who has won the Champions League previously with Real Madrid, but if anything that is a deterrent for Mourinho, who is attempting to inspire his players to achieve something he continues to bill as 'against the odds' and 'in the face of recent history'. Indeed, throughout his career he has always targeted and prioritised 'hungry' players without bulging trophy cabinets.

He has even preferred to include Jesus Fernandez and Antonio Adan in his squad ahead of him - much to the ire of the Spanish media and many supporters. But we would be fooling ourselves to think that he even remotely cares about what anyone else thinks, and he is entirely right to not let anything else bother him besides picking the players he deems most focused and determined to achieve success this season.

The former Chelsea manager became the first boss to drop Casillas in over a decade when he left the player out of Real Madrid’s team to play Malaga last year, but what has been more striking of late has been the way that he has been at pains to point out that the keeper is fit and ready to go. As if to say, 'yes, I can pick him - I just don't want to'.

In the build-up to his side's clash with Galatasaray, Mourinho pulled a note out of his pocket in contrived Benitez-esque fashion and proceeded to project his voice in reading out a series of statements made by the journalist who had the audacity to ask the question and had accused him of not being particularly impartial.

"There should be no law that says any particular player should play," Mourinho read out. "No one should play for what they have won in the past." This did not sound like a coach in any great rush to positively nurture a previously injured player back to match fitness with the intention of introducing them back into the side.

How long will the Spanish number one have to wait? At this stage it has gone way beyond simply picking the best available goalkeeper, and Mourinho is off at the end of the season. Who can blame him for only having the short term in mind? He is not exactly renowned for his long-term development projects at clubs. His only focus should be on galvanising his squad to produce the best possible results in the few big matches still to come.

When the keeper broke his hand two months ago he pushed for the signing of Sevilla's Lopez. It was the perfect opportunity to make his point, and he fully intends to stick with his new man until the bitter end of a very mixed campaign that he hopes - and no doubt fully expects - will culminate in a glorious triumph at Wembley Stadium on May 25.

It is, of course, patently clear to anyone that the Casillas issue will remain the elephant in the room for the remainder of the campaign, and Mourinho will no doubt take great delight in praising Lopez at every opportunity as he retains his place in the side. This Champions League run is all about the manager - in the manager's eyes - and not the return of the harshly neglected club captain.

As barbed remarks go, Mourinho's curt answer to the 377th Casillas question earlier in the week was a pretty prickly one: "Individuals are not important". Indeed, the only important individual to Mourinho is himself, and he uses his stubbornness as an additional motivation for proving people wrong.

Mourinho's assistant Aitor Karanka said last week Casillas lacked the "competitive edge" necessary to return to the team, further suggesting that either the keeper is not mentally ready to play - which is unlikely - or that his continued omission will be justified by any means possible. If he was to be considered for a comeback, the 1-1 draw at Real Zaragoza in La Liga on the weekend would have been an ideal opportunity, but despite having been passed fit, he was not.

Spanish newspaper Marca reported in January that Casillas - and Sergio Ramos, incidentally - informed club officials that they would be handing in transfer requests should Mourinho remain in charge at the beginning of next season. Well, he won't be in charge next season, and he will continue to enjoy the tumultuous relationship he has with an ego that has clashed with his own so publicly.

This season is increasingly looking to be a write off for Spain's number one, as Mourinho eyes the glorious sign off.

QUOTE OF THE DAY: 

"In the last few hours, on social networks, unacceptable remarks have been made by Marseille player Joey Barton against Paris St Germain player Thiago Silva. These attacks are serious and go beyond mere verbal jousting. The directors of the club, the players and the coaching staff are supportive of Thiago Silva and cannot accept such statements. They reaffirm their unwavering commitment to the values of respect that should govern our sport. Thiago Silva and Paris St Germain reserve the right to take any action they deem necessary." - PSG criticise and threaten legal action against Joey Barton after the Marseille midfielder used Twitter to liken Thiago Silva to an "overweight ladyboy", as you do. It was never going to get him into any trouble, was it...

FOREIGN VIEW: 

A Brazilian player has been banned for six games for entering the pitch without permission and stopping a certain goal by heading the ball off the line - one of the most heroic, and well... stupid, acts. Bangu defender Celsinho had been receiving treatment for cramp behind the goal when he leapt up and intervened after goalkeeper Getulio Vargas dribbled the ball out and was left looking remarkably silly as he lost the ball. Celsinho, for saving his goalkeeper's blushes with an extraordinary diving header, was found guilty of 'unethical behaviour'.

COMING UP: 

Three Premier League clubs are in Europa League quarter-final action as Chelsea take on Rubin Kazan, Newcastle host Benfica and Tottenham face FC Basel. Oh, and Lazio are up against Fenerbahce. Big Jan Molby will also file for us in the afternoon.

By Eurosport | Early Doors – 5 hours ago

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