Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has backed new signing Samuel Eto’o to be a success at Stamford Bridge, once he has found his feet in England.
The Cameroon international, who worked with Mourinho during their Inter Milan days, signed for The Blues from Russian side Anzhi and made his debut during the 1-0 loss to Everton, in a game which he was guilty for missing several chances.
Despite not scoring a single goal for his new side as of yet, Mourinho has backed Eto’o to be a real-hit in England, once he is feeling settled.
“The player I know, the professional I know…what happened in Russia in the last two-and-a-half years I didn’t know,” said the Portuguese, who had Eto’o in his Inter Milan side that won the 2010 Champions League.
“Normally when a top player is one of the top players in Europe and then goes to Anzhi the pressure goes down, the motivation and physical condition and sharpness goes down.
“Now he’s back in top European football and needs a bit of time to find that sharpness. He’s playing a lot. He played 80 minutes this week and he is getting his form and an understanding of where he is.
“But the Premier League is a different picture. So give him a little bit of time.”
“Players transform themselves with years. They get stronger in some aspects of their game, but lose other strengths,” explained Mourinho.
“At Inter he played wide and came inside, very fast and I don’t think can play the same way.
“He must be a more static player, a pure number nine. Players have to adapt to their age, potential and condition.”
Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt
