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Mourinho: I 'fell in love' with Salah at Chelsea, club sanctioned sale Jose Mourinho has said he "fell in love" with Mohamed Salah before signing him for Chelsea, but that the Egypt international became a "lost kid in London" during his time at Stamford Bridge. Salah made 19 appearances for Chelsea after sealing an £11 million move from FC Basel in 2014 before moving to Fiorentina on loan in February 2015. Chelsea then sold Salah permanently to Roma in August 2016 before the forward returned to the Premier League with Liverpool at the start of the 2017-18 season. Salah has since gone on to become one of the biggest stars in the Premier League and a key figure in Jurgen Klopp's team, but Mourinho has reiterated that, rather than cast him aside as Chelsea manager, he actually gave him his big chance. "Let me start with Salah, because lots of things have been told that are not true," Mourinho said on beIN SPORTS. "People try to identify me as the coach that sold Salah. "I am the coach that bought Salah, so it is completely the wrong idea. I played against Basel in the Champions League and Salah was a kid in Basel. When I play against a certain team, I analyse the players for a long time and I fell in love with that kid. "I bought the kid, I pushed the club to buy him and we already had fantastic attacking players like [Eden] Hazard, Willian. Top talent, but I told them to buy that kid." Mourinho said, however, that Salah's failure to claim a regular spot at Chelsea led to the unhappiness that prompted his move to Italy. "He was just a lost kid in London, a lost kid in a new world," Mourinho said. "We wanted to work him to become better and better, but he wanted to play and not wait. "So we put him on loan in Italy -- technical, physical football -- a good place to play. Fiorentina had no pressure to win a title, but when the club decided to sell him, it was not me. "But I bought him, not sell him and my relationship with him was good. "I think he doesn't regret that move because the progression went well, but he was just a kid who wanted to play every week and I couldn't give him that." http://www.espn.com/soccer/chelsea/story/3753200/mourinho-i-fell-in-love-with-salah-at-chelseaclub-sanctioned-sale I agree with him, the club sold him.

That's why I always loved Bielsa. For years I wanted him to come to the pl. The British are finally seeing what many of us in Latin America already knew. It's just a pity it took this long.

It's a loan. Not much to lose.

Might be too soon. He needs to get used to us and everything. To start bad will not be good for his confidence. The only thing that can be done is a small cameo in the second half.

Pre season don't mean much. How many players in the past done great in pre season to never feature. Sarri has done great in giving the time to Cho for his age. The problem is the board not the manager. You don't let contracts run down like this.

Check this out in that article: Chelsea would not normally pursue a player of Higuaín’s age, and would instinctively be more inclined to go for Internazionale’s Mauro Icardi as a longer-term solution. But Sarri, in desperate need of a striker familiar with his preferred style of play, has made clear a desire to work again with a forward who set a new Serie A goalscoring record of 36 in 35 games over the season under his stewardship at Napoli....

That's the issue, if he don't want to stay you got to let him go. Like I said in the past, it was not Sarri fault but the board dragging the contract situation. And as you can see with our current transfer dealing, they drag and drag and drag. Just to panic buy at the end. Really horrible, but of course they keep doing the same thing and we just blame the managers.

For a loan it's a good deal. For a buy it's a stupid idea. For a loan with a force to buy even a stupider idea. For an option to buy with loan then amazing idea.

Worth the risk. If Drinkwater cost that, then 32 for a young upcoming player is worth a shot.

A loan with option to buy is good. Not a force to buy, but option if we want to take it.

Very high, and CHO will continue to play. I do think Chelsea will sell if there's a buy back clause.

20

No we will pay 50 million for Wilson. They are stupid. Drinkwater and Wilson.

Joke of a club.

So we get a declining higuain and Milan get a young upcoming striker in piatek? Makes sense, just like about every single thing this club does....

I agree. Plus Chinese team will pay good money.

Asked when he expects a Fabregas replacement -- reportedly a straight choice between Zenit St Petersburg midfielder Leandro Paredes and Cagliari star Nicolo Barella -- to arrive, Sarri replied: "I have no idea. "It's not too much [of a worry for me]. [If] the club is worried, I don't know. The club knows very well my opinion. I need the player there [in that position]. It depends on the club decision, I think. I cannot do anything more." http://www.espn.com/soccer/chelsea/story/3749916/chelseas-sarri-jorginho-trouble-proof-club-need-fabregas-replacement Another manager having to beg the club to do something. Why do we keep blaming managers, when managers after managers continue to have the same problem with the board? The reason why City and Liverpool are doing well is because they have a board that works with them.

Sarri said the same thing I just said: Chelsea's Sarri: Jorginho 'trouble' proof club need Fabregas replacement LONDON -- Maurizio Sarri reiterated that Chelsea must find a replacement for Cesc Fabregas in the January transfer window after admitting that Jorginho was "in trouble" during Saturday's 2-1 win over Newcastle. "Today Jorginho was in trouble and on the bench there wasn't a player for that position," Sarri said. "I need an option for Jorginho." Asked when he expects a Fabregas replacement -- reportedly a straight choice between Zenit St Petersburg midfielder Leandro Paredes and Cagliari star Nicolo Barella -- to arrive, Sarri replied: "I have no idea. "It's not too much [of a worry for me]. [If] the club is worried, I don't know. The club knows very well my opinion. I need the player there [in that position]. It depends on the club decision, I think. I cannot do anything more." http://www.espn.com/soccer/chelsea/story/3749916/chelseas-sarri-jorginho-trouble-proof-club-need-fabregas-replacement

No better options. Get the man better players.

He is just good to have for the HG quota.

Simple, Alonso is not great and no top team would want him. So if you give him something he will gladly take it. But the influential players the board can't get it right.....So it's obvious the demands are not being met. I wonder if it's true that Hazard never signed because he sees no vision and ambition from the club.....

Fatigue.

Agreed this false 9 is horrible. And that speaks of the state we are in, where the coach rather play a false 9 then an actual striker. What the board has done with the strikers have been abysmal.

We can just win the EL and get CL.

I don't think it's Sarri fault. It's the board fault for not having agreed a new contract a while. Look at how we let other contract drag? To me Sarri has been doing great with giving time to CHO giving his age. That's about the right away to ease him into the club. But the problem here is the board and the contracts.