David Luiz played the role of the jester at Chelsea perfectly. So well, in fact, he earned himself cult status on the back of it.

Now a Paris Saint-Germain player, he’s become the jilted lover.

Luiz will return to Stamford Bridge this week as Chelsea and PSG do battle in the second leg of their last-16 Champions League tie.

Rather than feeling sentimental about his time in London, the Brazilian defender has been quick to stoke the flames of what was already promising to be an intense occasion on Wednesday.

“He [Mourinho] is special for you, but not for me,” Luiz told L’Equipe (per the Daily Mail).

“I had some great moments at Chelsea and won a lot of titles. I was very happy.

“They are having a great season, defend well and have great players, but above all I know my team. We will try to score there and play like we know how we can.

“We will have a good game plan and implement it the best way possible to achieve a great performance. Both can still qualify.”

If it wasn’t clear already, Luiz seems to be carrying some baggage around with him on the back of his summer move from Stamford Bridge to Ligue 1.

He’s endeavoured at times to suggest he petitioned for a transfer, saying that he refused a contract offer from Chelsea.

Now his criticism of Mourinho implies something altogether different.

We can criticise the character of the Chelsea boss all we like. There are times when he heightens the negative focus on Chelsea with talk of campaigns against the club and all the rest of it in ways that are not helpful.

It can prove rather tiresome, like that proverbial broken record spinning endlessly on repeat.

But as a manager, it’s difficult to suggest Mourinho is anything but his reputation as one of the world’s finest.

Mourinho’s track record speaks for itself, and after a two-year spell without silverware, he recently got that winning feeling back when Chelsea lifted the Capital One Cup trophy at Wembley.

That win over Tottenham Hotspur was no fluke, either. Mourinho has added yet another trophy to a long list of previous successes that span Portugal, England, Italy and Spain.

In many ways, it’s his most impressive trophy, too, lifting it with a team that he has built.

When Mourinho first arrived at Chelsea in 2004, everything was ready for success. It was the same in Italy with Inter Milan and in Spain with Real Madrid.

This Chelsea side is very much Mourinho’s team, however.

When he returned to Stamford Bridge, the Chelsea boss had to trim the fat from the squad he inherited—one that was unbalanced after years of instability.

Mourinho has fixed that problem, with players such as Luiz replaced by those of more substance—namely Kurt Zouma.

Top of the league, a trophy already in the cabinet—it’s difficult to argue Mourinho’s plans are not working.

It’s what we’ve seen this term which is why the Special One moniker doesn’t grow old with Mourinho.

Luiz’s comments are on the contrary, and it’s revealing when he suggests Chelsea will not go out to win the game on Wednesday, saying how PSG “will play like we know we can.”

That said, it’s rather comical, especially given how Laurent Blanc lined his team up for the first leg at home with three central defenders to counter the threat of Diego Costa and Eden Hazard.

And credit to the PSG boss as he largely got what he had wished for, despite the 1-1 draw.

Sure, it’s all jesting, but coming from Luiz, there seems to be an underlying feeling of regret—one player frustrated that he was ousted from a club where he was happy, all because he didn’t fit into the manager’s plans.

Mourinho has made this Chelsea a far stronger proposition than the team Luiz featured in.

Indeed, without Luiz at all, Chelsea are far stronger than they have ever been.

Criticise Mourinho the man, sure, David, but the coach? Now that’s just sour grapes.

Garry Hayes is Bleacher Report’s lead Chelsea correspondent. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter @garryhayes

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Paris Saint-Germain supremo Zlatan Ibrahimovic has revealed he wishes he had worked for Jose Mourinho longer than the season the pair spent together at Inter Milan.

Ibrahimovic led the Nerazzurri to Serie A success under Mourinho‘s tutelage before being shipped off to Barcelona in a part-exchange deal for Samuel Eto’o. He struggled at the Camp Nou (albeit while winning five trophies) before securing titles with AC Milan and current club PSG.

Zlatan makes his way to Stamford Bridge for the French side’s Champions League round-of-16 second leg against Mourinho‘s Chelsea on Wednesday, a match against the manager he wishes he had spent more time with. 

“We worked together for one year at Inter,” Ibrahimovic told Telefoot, via Rohan Banerjee of MailOnline. “The feeling was great between us and my only regret is that we were together for only one year.”

These comments, combined with quips from Ibrahimovic‘s agent, Mino Raiola, have led to speculation that he could one day sign for Chelsea, per Jamie Anderson of the Daily Star. Raiola expects the Swedish striker to continue playing for the better part of the next decade, although he hints it may not be with PSG:

We struck a deal. He has worked for me for 15 years. Now, he’s going to work his last eight years for me. That means his career could last another eight years. He’s in great shape. I don’t know if he’s going to stay at Paris Saint-Germain for eight years, but he can play until he’s 42-43 years old.

Ibrahimovic‘s goalscoring prowess was highlighted by Squawka:

Raiola says Ibrahimovic is “happy in Paris” but that “every summer we see what happens.” That leaves the door open to any potential suitors that fancy a powerful, technically astute finisher who is capable of winning any match.

B/R UK’s Ryan Bailey and Jonathan Johnson recently discussed the fact that Ibrahimovic needs to do more during the second-leg tie against Chelsea, however:

Rumours of a potential transfer arrive alongside another unlikely move, as Liverpool’s Raheem Sterling continues to be linked to the club, per Jack Watts of the Daily Star. Watts suggests Sterling’s failure to sign a new contract outlines Chelsea as “shock candidates” and “joint-favourites” for his signature alongside Real Madrid, with bookmakers cutting his price to 5-2, per Oddschecker.

Both Ibrahimovic and Sterling appear unlikely arrivals right now. Even so, the former is certain to cross Mourinho‘s mind in the coming days.

The Champions League score is finely balanced at 1-1, ensuring PSG must net if they’re going to escape losing on away goals. Ibrahimovic and Mourinho are two of the biggest personalities in the game, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the goalscoring output of the former or the tactical nuance of the latter define the tie.

They could achieve special things together. Ibra offers a touch of class and an ability to go about his work uniquely, the kind of quality that has seen his career littered with outrageous goals. While a future partnership with Mourinho may be possible, both men will hope they can come out on top during Wednesday’s crunch eliminator.

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Former Liverpool defender and BBC pundit Mark Lawrenson has labelled Mario Balotelli a “waste of time” after watching the Italian striker fail to impact the Reds’ 0-0 FA Cup draw with Blackburn on Sunday.

Brendan Rodgers threw Balotelli on with half an hour remaining in search of a goal, but his arrival didn’t help matters. He hit the target with one of his two shots, completed 66.7 percent of his passes and managed just 12 touches in a centre-forward’s role, per WhoScored.com.

This wastefulness has been typical of his season. Lawrenson expects the player to almost certainly let his team-mates down, reported by Richard Arrowsmith of the Daily Mail:

“Forget about Mario Balotelli,” said Lawrenson. “He is an absolute waste of time. He shouldn’t be anywhere near this team. I can see why Brendan Rodgers threw him on today as he might just create something, but 99 times out of 100 he will let you down.”

Although Balotelli’s reputation preceded him before he arrived at Anfield during the summer, many Liverpool supporters rightfully gave him the benefit of the doubt. At 24 years old, this could have been the move that finally kickstarted his career toward greatness. He is undoubtedly talented—many will point back to his two-goal destruction of Germany at Euro 2012—but his output remains volatile.

Balotelli’s performance against Blackburn provided a snapshot of his career with the Reds. He found space easy enough in front of the opposition’s defence, but appeared more likely to blaze over from outside the box than to pass and move into the area. He knows how to hold the ball up, yet lacks the tactical nuance to make the best of his presence closer to the goalkeeper.

B/R UK’s Alex Dimond previously suggested Liverpool could regret not strengthening their attacking options during January:

The former Manchester City man has scored four goals this season, failing to notch more than one in any competition so far. He scored the Premier League winner against Tottenham, but other than that, his most remarkable success was a penalty he stole from vice-captain Jordan Henderson in the Europa League first leg against Besiktas.

Granted, he scored the spot-kick, but this moment highlighted an individual who fails to promote the improving team-ethic of Brendan Rodgers’ side. Captain Steven Gerrard suggested Balotelli showed “disrespect” to Henderson, per BBC Sport, a comment which many would agree with.

While Rodgers has tried to fit the striker in from the bench in recent times, the Northern Irish manager previously pushed him out of the side with a switch to 3-4-2-1. Liverpool’s change of fortune has seen them roll on unbeaten inside 90 minutes since December, largely without Balotelli in the team.

Lawrenson’s comments may seem harsh, but Balotelli is an obviously talented player who has made a career out of under-performing.

Liverpool took a chance on him when many others wouldn’t have bothered. There’s always the sense he’s one goal away from turning things around, but then again, this feeling has followed him since he burst onto the scene with Inter Milan nearly eight years ago.

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Arsenal look as though they’ll face some stern competition if they’re going to land Barcelona star Pedro this summer, with reports in Catalonia claiming that Manchester United are also in the race for the winger.

According to Sport (h/t Metro) the Red Devils, Liverpool, Inter Milan and Paris Saint-Germain are all keeping a close eye on the situation regarding the player, meaning any move to the Gunners is not cut and dry. As noted in the piece, reports from Spanish newspaper AS had claimed Arsenal would have to shell out £22 million for Pedro’s signature.

Here’s why he will command such a substantial fee:

Rumours regarding the player’s future are natural given the decline in his squad status since the arrival of Luis Suarez last summer. The Spanish international is very much a deputy at this juncture, with the enticing triumvirate of Suarez, Neymar and Lionel Messi pushing Barcelona toward glory on three fronts at the moment.

But he’s the player Luis Enrique would most likely call upon should one of the aforementioned trio fall foul of injury or suspension. Given the Camp Nou club wouldn’t be able to draft in a replacement in this window should he be sold, the prospect of cashing in on the player isn’t really a sensible one from Barcelona’s perspective.

As noted by barcastuff, the Blaugrana have an impeccable record when he features too:

For Arsenal, it’s not really a move that would make much sense. The player has a dynamism and an eye for goal that’d enamour him to a host of top clubs, but the Gunners have a surfeit of attacking midfielders in their squad already. To crowd that area of the pitch further—especially if it was at the expense of other areas of the squad—would be especially rapacious on the part of Arsene Wenger.

Indeed, as noted by Bleacher Report’s Arsenal correspondent James McNicholas, it’s very tough to choose a best Gunners XI given the options they currently boast in their squad:

With so many players in situ—especially in the midfield area of this team—perhaps it’s no surprise that some stars have been linked with a move away from the Emirates this summer. But it’d be a major surprise to see Jack Wilshere leave the club, despite reports claiming the 23-year-old is a target for Manchester City.

According to Paul Hetherington of the Daily Star, the champions are looking to bolster their squad with some youthful English talent this summer and see Wilshere as an ideal player to add some class to a much maligned central midfield area.

As noted by Ian Doyle of the Liverpool Echo after City’s recent 2-1 loss to Liverpool, Manuel Pellegrini has a lot of issues that need resolving at the heart of his team:

But it’s tough to see this one materialising. City need a player who is going to nail down a spot in the team and be at the core of the first XI as they look to build toward a more prosperous future. Wilshere has the requisite class to potentially fill such an important role, but his perennial fitness problems would make him a peculiar acquisition on the part of Pellegrini.

The Arsenal man is a Gunner through and through anyway. You suspect it would be tough to leave his boyhood club, but if these fitness problems persist and others continue to flourish in the Emirates engine room, then Wilshere could find himself on the outside looking in regularly. That’d certainly make the prospect of a potential transfer a lot more likely.

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