Jose Mourinho Credits Roman Abramovich’s ‘Money’ as Key Factor to His Chelsea Success

Jose Mourinho shocked the English Landscape by winning the Premier League in his debut season with Chelsea. The Portuguese manager who describes himself as ‘the special one’ put an end to Arsenal and Manchester United’s domination of English soccer. His Chelsea stint boasted of an imperious defense and their 15 league goals conceded in the 2004/05 season remains one of the most incredible team achievements in soccer history. In a recent podcast, Mourinho detailed how former owner Roman Abramovich helped in Chelsea’s success.

Mourinho is currently coaching AS Roma in Serie A. Although, he managed to win the UEFA Conference League with the Italian side, he hasn’t come close to replicating his heroics with Chelsea as Roma sits in the 7th place. Perhaps, he is feeling the absence of a supportive owner like Abramovich.

Jose Mourinho reveals Abramovich’s role in Chelsea’s dominance

For Mourinho, the key factor in his success with Chelsea remains Roman Abramovich. He explained in a recent podcast, “First of all Abramovich money. Because every time we speak of the best teams, we are speaking of the money too. Now what Man City is, now what Liverpool is, now what Chelsea still is, but they are not as good as we were.” Is the Portuguese tactician implying that finances are key to success for soccer clubs?

Mourinho gave the example of Didier Drogba’s signing to highlight how Roman Abramovich supported him as an owner. The former Chelsea boss also mentioned other factors that contributed to Chelsea’s trophy-laden spell. He explained, “We had a good coach, we had good players, and then we could choose players based on character, based also on personality.” As per the Portuguese tactician, the last 2 factors contributed greatly to the signing of Didier Drogba and Michael Essien, two of Chelsea’s greatest-ever players.

Although Jose Mourinho considers money as important to success, it seems that finances are limited at his current club. This could explain his comments towards former rival Pep Guardiola.

The special one takes a dig at Pep Guardiola

AS Roma spent just above $10 million in the summer transfer window. It looks like the Roma boss isn’t pleased as he commented on Manchester City’s lavish spending. He said, “Look, not that I’m jealous, but Manchester City, for example, paid €80 million for Phillips. And now, in January, Pep said he will send him away and buy another [midfielder].”

Read More: Jose Mourinho Reveals One Player Who Eradicated Real Madrid’s Problems After Cristiano Ronaldo’s Exit

Considering that most of Roma’s transfers were loans or free signings, the special one has a point. Also, Roma does not play in the UCL and thereby is losing out on a lot of money. Hence, investment from the owners is critical for success.

Is Chelsea 2004/05 Jose Mourinho’s best-ever team? Let us know in the comments below.

WATCH THIS STORY: Meet the Legendary Tennis Player Who is 3x Richer than Cristiano Ronaldo