Champions League: Jose Mourinho focus on Schalke not Roberto Di Matteo
Tuesday 25 November 2014 12:20, UK
Jose Mourinho insists Chelsea's focus must be on the match - not the manager - when they tackle Schalke in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Victory will secure Chelsea's passage to the Champions League group stages but much of the focus will be on Mourinho's opposite number in the home dug-out, Roberto Di Matteo.
The latter oversaw Chelsea's Champions League triumph in 2012 but Mourinho maintains there will be no room for sentiment in Gelsenkirchen.
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Mourinho said: "I don't play against him. If I play against him, he wins because he plays better than me. Unless I am fitter, which I don't know, but normally he wins because he is much better than me. It is Chelsea against Schalke, it is not me against Di Matteo.
"The group is easy to analyse. Any one of us can finish first, second or third. Obviously Sporting (Lisbon) and Maribor can finish fourth also, but we can finish first, second or third.
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"To finish third and go to the Europa League should be something that would be against the evolution of this team.
"This team wants to be a very good team and to be a very good team you have to play against the best teams in the best competitions."
The sides drew 1-1 at Stamford Bridge in the opening group game - before Di Matteo took charge - when Klaas-Jan Huntelaar cancelled out Cesc Fabregas' goal.
Di Matteo's side won 3-2 against Wolfsburg on Saturday and he said: "For me personally, I'll just concentrate on my work of trying to win the game for Schalke. Chelsea also played on Saturday and they are in the same position as us in terms of recovery.
"We have the Champions League game on Tuesday where everything is still open and anything can happen, but we want to take at least a point from the home game."
