Mourinho Shows How It's Done; From Wayne Rooney To Willian

As the transfer-window deadline approaches, Jose Mourinho is the role model for keeping calm, getting the job done and messing with your opponents at the same time.

Mourinho and the Spurs Sucker Punch

Jose Mourinho has been frighteningly efficient in this transfer window. With the all-powerful Roman Abramovichai??i??s substantial financial clout backing him up ai??i?? the two share a great working relationship ai??i?? the Chelsea FC managerai??i??s squad is exactly where he wants it to be. Well, almost. Chelsea have a line-up containing some of the best players in the League in their positions (Eden Hazard, Juan Mata, David Luiz, Petr Cech, Branislav Ivanovic, to name a few), has some of the worldai??i??s best young players on the bench (Oscar, Andre Schurrle, van Ginkel, et al). Currently, the weakest position in the squad is that of a central striker; though ai???weakai??i?? is hardly a word one should associate with a roster containing Fernando Torres (22 goals in 2012-13), Romelu Lukaku (17 goals and 4 assists in 2012-13) and Demba Ba (19 goals in 2012-13). So, Mourinho should be fairly happy with his squad right about now, yet heai??i??s still been active in the last one week. The reason: both his targets will not just make him stronger, they will also weaken a rival.

Jose Mourinho - Nabbed Willian from under Tottenham's noses — Jose Mourinho – Nabbed Willian from under Tottenham’s noses

Letai??i??s consider his capture of the Brazilian attacking midfielder/ winger Willian from Anzhi Makhachkala. To capture a player while he is in the process of giving a medical at another club is unheard of. When the player is one that plays in an area of the pitch where you already have 6 players fighting for 3 positions (Mata, Hazard, Oscar, Schurrle, Moses and Kevin De Bruyne) is absolutely baffling. That is until you realise that Mourinho probably did it just to mess with Tottenham Hotspur and manager Andre Villas-Boas. Tottenhamai??i??s spending spree (Paulinho and Roberto Soldadoai??i??s transfers are already the two most expensive signings ever by the club) have been aimed at making them contenders for the top-4 spot, and perhaps even for higher aspirations. Mourinho and Abramovich know they canai??i??t allow for one more competitor outside of the two Manchester clubs. So calls were made, and one can almost picture Willian being picked up at the London airport by Chelsea officials disguised as Spurs officials. Anyway, who can say no when Mighty Mou turns on the charm.

Mourinho and the New Man at Man United

In Mourinhoai??i??s first stint in the Premier League, his handling of press conferences was one of the reasons why even a lot of rival fans grew to adore him. His ability to deliver a verbal back-handed slap sandwiched between sincere sounding (ai???soundingai??i?? being the operative word here) compliments was legendary. If there was one man he at times avoided messing with was Sir Alex Ferguson, who was a master media manager in his own right. The Portuguese and the Scot had a knack for getting under the skins of regular foot-in-mouth victims Arsene Wenger and Rafa Benitez, or anyone else they turned their attentions on. Then he departed to conquer Europe, and has had trophy filled runs at Inter Milan and Real Madrid. His second coming has coincided with the retirement of Sir Alex (ai???finally!ai??? ai??i?? exclaimed his rivals). So, after 3 years of a strained relationship with Spanish media, he is again a master of all he surveys (in the press rooms).

Wayne Rooney - Mourinho doing his best to bring him to Chelsea — Wayne Rooney – Mourinho reminds him he’s Moyes’ “second-choice”

The afore-mentioned aspect of Mourinhoai??i??s transfer tactic of destabilizing rivals while upgrading quality at the same time is evident also in his chase for Manchester Unitedai??i??s Wayne Rooney. Not only does he recognise the quality Rooney would bring to his front-line, he has also been using the chase as a vehicle to inject some uncertainty into the United camp. He has regularly adding fuel to the fire of Rooneyai??i??s squirmings to escape from Old Trafford, mostly by constantly re-iterating his interest in the Englishman in his (highly entertaining) press conferences. His most recent verbal swipe has been aimed firmly at new manager David Moyes, claiming the Scot is the reason for Rooneyai??i??s unhappiness, as he was the one who claimed Rooney would be second choice to Robin van Persie. Moyes will be silently fuming at the comments, though he is probably smart enough not to reply. Mourinho has cleverly reminded everyone of the comment that had left Rooney distraught and considering a move away, while at the same time letting Wazza know he should join him in the Blue side of London to ensure first team football. David Moyes will shudder at the thought of Rooney putting in a transfer request at this late stage in the transfer window.Ai??Mourinho’s latest comments asking Rooney to submit a transfer request within 48 hours is just another ploy by the man, attempting to egg on the destabilized forward to force an exit. Rest assured, he won’t turn Wayne away even if he comes by Stamford Bridge a day later than the allocated 48 hours.

The Rest Are Lagging Behind

While Mourinho has done exceptionally well in this window, managers of the other top teams of the Premiership still have a lot left to do. Still recovering from the embarrassment of the Willian saga, Tottenham HotspurAi??are pushing hard for a move for Romaai??i??s Erik Lamela. Lamela is a good prospect who might help fill some of the gap left by Gareth Baleai??i??s impending departure to Real Madrid, though is unlikely to match his 26 goals from last season, not to mention his all-round contribution in key games (Lamela scored 15 goals last season for Roma). In case they lose out on him, they could be locked in another transfer battle with Liverpool FC (they were also after Willian), who need a left-midfielder and a center-back, as per manager Brendan Rodgers.

Manchester City are also in need of a center-half: Vincent Kompany recently sustained a bad groin injury, Micah Richards is out of action for atleast a month, and Matija Nastasic is being eased back into the team after recently coming back from an ankle injury. Against Cardiff City, Man City were forced to use midfielder Javi Martinez in defence, and went on to concede 3 goals from the newly promoted Welsh side. Other than 32 year old Martin Demichelis, Manuel Pellegrini is also rumoured to be targeting PSGai??i??s Mamadou Sakho, who has also been linked to Roma, Liverpool, Spurs (as is anyone else linked to Liverpool) and Arsenal FC.

To the Arsenal FC fans, Arsene Wengerai??i??s claims that he could bring in up to 3 new players before deadline day, after having only brought in Yaya Sonago and failing in bids for Luis Suarez and Yohan Cabaye, probably sounds as convincing as him finding a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow after getting there on a flying unicorn. Stranger things have happened though, and even one high profile signing would please the Gunners fans right about now.

As it stands, there is mass panic in all the top English camps, as managers and their men scramble helter-skelter to seal deals for their top (or even middle) targets. All this while Mourinho is sitting pretty, probably sipping a cool drink, smiling as he thinks of his hand in the chaos around him.

Mourinho Shows How It’s Done; From Wayne Rooney To Willian

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