Jose Mourinho Hints At Ashley Cole & Maicon Being Top Of His Summer Shopping List At Real Madrid
Jose Mourinho has rarely been out of the news this season. Fresh from capturing a historic treble with Inter, the charismatic Portuguese is set to be appointed as coach at Real Madrid very soon.
The 'Special One' gave his first revealing interview about his plans to Spanish daily AS and touched on all the key talking points ahead of his move being finalised today.
On transfer targets...Defensive reinforcement would appear to be at the forefront of Mourinho's mind, perhaps casting doubt on the future of at Chelsea of England left-back Ashley Cole. although Maicon from Inter would appear to be a priority.
"I want three or four defensive players, because we will get better in attack," he said.
"Normally (my teams) play with four at the back, but with full-backs in the style of Ashley Cole and Maicon ... we're prepared to play with three as well."Maicon is a 'crack', a physical wonder, he has fantastic quality and is a full-back that scores six or seven goals a season, and not from set pieces. I'm not going to say that I wouldn't like to have him at Madrid."
However, it seems unlikely that he will be bidding for Benfica's Fabio Coentrao just yet.
"He is a player that's getting a lot of praise right now, but signing Fabio Coentrao is like signing a Portuguese Marcelo," he explained, which serves as a vote of confidence for Madrid's young Brazilian.
"I prefer to sign a player with a different profile, although I recognise he's made great progress."
Another Benfica star is Angel Di Maria, but price would seem to rule out a move for the Argentine.
"He's a fantastic player in a smaller championship. I have doubts that he could do the same in a championship like the Spanish or Italian ones. If you told me we could sign Di Maria at an accessible price, I'd say let's go ahead and sign him now. But the price is out of this world so I say that I don't like my clubs paying crazy prices for players."
It also seems unlikely that Diego Milito or Daniele De Rossi will be moving to Spain either.
"As a centre forward, Milito has it all. He's a fantastic attacker. But I also think he's a player that's entered into making history with Inter, and the club can't let him go.
"I think it's impossible to sign (De Rossi) because Roma is Totti and De Rossi. Totti will finish his career shortly and De Rossi is the one who will carry on from him."
And England would seem to be the place he plans to look for some experience with which to stiffen up his midfield, with Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard highly rated by the coach.
"I like footballers in the final part of their career. I love to have footballers of 33 or 34 years old ... They are players that you won't get money back from, but if you get three good years from them it's worth it. Both are really great players and have always given everything."
On playing good football...Fond as he is of attacking full-backs such as Maicon and Ashley Cole, Mourinho plans to stamp his own style on the team at the Bernabeu.
"In midfield we can play with a diamond or a triangle. If we use the triangle I can play with three forwards," he said.
"It will be a balanced team. We will have our own identity, we won't imitate anyone."A team is a team. It's very difficult to be better than your opponents for the whole 90 minutes, so there's always a moment where you have to be a team and make sacrifices."
On Raul and Guti...Mourinho may be something of an iconclast, but he is not ready yet to offend any Bernabeu fans' favourites.
"The veterans deserve to be happy. And they can be happy playing in another team, or assuming another role in the team that has been their home for a long time," he expained.
"Guti, for me, is already gone. I've read what he's said and that's it. Raul, on the other hand, I haven't heard say anything. When I will be in Madrid I'd like to speak to him on the telephone or meet him wherever he wants to talk."
