We’ve already heard recently that former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has got his eye on John Obi Mikel this summer, and Ricardo Carvalho was rumoured to want a reunion with his ex-boss from the minute he took over at Inter, so to hear the same rumours circulating again this week comes as no surprise.
We’re in a position of waiting for a new manager to arrive at the club yet again, so whether Mourinho really is sniffing around again or if it’s just the usual speculation is anyone’s guess but it’s hardly a shock either way.
The latest reports suggest Mourinho plans to offer £21million for the pair, with £6million of it for the centre-back he brought to Chelsea from Porto. Carvalho has always been highly rated at Chelsea and played a key part in our back-to-back titles under Mourinho but he’s 31 now and has spent most of this season out injured, playing just two games in the last four months, so maybe the time’s right to let him go? We’ve got Michael Mancienne who can play either at centre-back or right-back, Branislav Ivanovic who can play across the back four, and we’ve been linked to Porto’s Bruno Alves, so it’s not as if we haven’t got options if he goes.
The other £25million Mourinho is offering is for John Obi Mikel – another player he signed during his time with us – in a slightly dodgier deal it has to be said. Mikel might be harder to prise away from us though because not only is he just 22 but he proved a handy player to have around with Michael Essien out for so long. Ok, so he’s no Michael Essien but I thought he did a decent enough job. Add to that the fact that the player himself doesn’t seem in any hurry to leave Chelsea, stating “I love coming in here every day and training with the guys and the banter that we share. I think I have played a lot of games and I am happy with that achievement over the course of the season and the way I have contributed. I will be disappointed when the season ends but we need a few weeks away to rest. I won the Young Player Award two years ago and now I am looking forward to one day winning the senior one if I can”, and Mourinho might not get his hands on Mikel after all.
On the down side for Mikel though, his current deal runs out in 2011 and despite his improved temperament on the pitch, his behavior off the pitch hasn’t been exactly angelic, so maybe the £15million being offered by Inter might be enough to persuade Chelsea to let him go?
Blue is the colour
