Jose Mourinho Set For Chelsea Return - Can He Re-Work His Magic?

Jose Mourinho outright declared on Spanish television that he expects to be unveiled as the next Chelsea manager by the end of the week. There has been tremendous levels of speculation surrounding a possible Mourinho return to Chelsea with numerous sources reporting that it is as good as a done deal. The quirky manager has maintained that he wants to go where he is loved and there is little doubt he is loved by Chelsea fans. He is far and away the fan's favourite to fill the position vacated by interim Rafael Benitez.

Mourinho managed Chelsea between 2004 and 2007. He left in September 2007 after serious disagreements with the clubs billionaire owner Roman Abramovich. During his tenure Mourinho won two Premier League titles, an FA Cup and two league cup titles. He oversaw one of the most successful periods in the club's history.

During his time in England, Mourinho won the fascination of fans and media alike. In an early press conference he declared himself the 'special one'. He would coach an extremely disciplined style and quickly show himself as a manager who attempted to connect with his players. Mourinho's eccentric personality will be welcomed back wholeheartedly by the Chelsea fan base and football fans across England.

Still, Mourinho's return will not guarantee success for this Chelsea club. Both the English Premier League landscape and Chelsea as a club has changed significantly since he left in 2007.

When Mourinho last managed in the EPL, Manchester City and Tottenham had significantly less cash to spend, Manchester United were in the midst of a financial change with the Glazer family taking control and Chelsea were a club with unlimited resources and the opportunity for Mourinho to build an essentially fresh squad.

The time was ripe for a period of Chelsea dominance and Mourinho took complete advantage. Since that period he has proven his managerial pedigree winning the Serie A title and Champions League title with Inter Milan and the La Liga title with Real Madrid.

His recent frustrations with Madrid might suggest a blemish on his CV, but the reality is that Mourinho ended a period of Barcelona dominance to an extent. He may have failed to bring a Champions League title back to Real Madrid, but he did appear in three straight semi-finals, which isn't the 'poor' performance that some suggest it might be.

Reports suggest that Mourinho will have funds to spend this summer. However, there's little doubt that stepping in at Chelsea will be the biggest challenge of his career so far. He inherits a squad full of players that some may feel don't fit his style and he will need to make important decisions about the likes of John Terry and Frank Lampard in terms of their playing time.

He will face the challenge of attempting to dislodge the Premier League title from the city of Manchester. He may return to England well-loved, but even Mourinho won't be protected at a club that is still viciously run by Abramovich. Mourinho will become Chelsea's third new manager in three seasons. This is despite the fact that the club has won the Champions League, Europa Cup and FA Cup in the last two seasons.

Success is expected and it won't be easy to achieve, even for the 'special one'.

(Sport) Rafa Benitez: Why Chelsea was the worst club for Rafa Benitez to manage

Many a manager has made a poor decision or two by either doing well at a smaller club and snapping at the chance of taking over a bigger club with a bigger budget or may have been out of work for a sustained period of time and took what was on offer despite knowing deep down it was not the best decision to accept the job. The latter scenario has played its self out in football many times and Rafa Bentiez’s tenure at Chelsea is another case study.

No one can fault Benitez taking the manager’s job at Chelsea as Chelsea have an excellent squad and resources and it would have been a good move if it weren’t for two reasons, having a boss who values the playing staff more than the manager and in the past managing one of the clubs fiercest rivals inflicting some of the clubs most painful defeats making him an instant target for Chelsea fans none too pleased by his appointment in the first place.

It wouldn’t be fair to call the manager’s job at Chelsea a poisoned chalice but it has a all the hallmarks. Its most successful managers have been shown the door not months after bringing a lorry load of silverware (Jose Mourinho, Carlo Anchelotti and Roberto Di Matteo), others have got results when times were less than perfect (Avram Grant and Guus Hiddink (although he left due to other commitments)), or didn’t really enough time to make their mark and make necessary alterations to an talented but ageing squad (Luis Felipe Scolari and Andre Villas Boas).  

Benitez must have known that it was going to be a mighty task to win over fans who didn’t like him much when he was manager at Liverpool when the rivalry between the two sides was toxic at best or the rivalry he had with the still popular Jose Mourinho, who is rumoured to be the man to replace Benitez. There have accusations that Benitez is being bullied by the fans who would probably have kept them content if he didn’t lose a game, which is unrealistic and unfair.  

Benitez will most definitely leave in the summer, if not any time in the near future or going on Chelsea’s owner Roman Abramovich track record, anytime between noon and teatime today.

In sum, Rafa has been treated unfairly and has had it rough but Benitez must have known that the fans were not going to happy having lost a popular and successful manager and former player in DI Matteo replaced by a man who managed Liverpool when the rivalry between the two sides was less than cordial to say the least producing some of the most controversial, mean spirited yet entertaining 90 minutes of football ever seen on English soil. All that Benitez can do now is win as many games as possible and secure a place in next year’s UEFA Champions League as any other scenario is unthinkable.