Porto out to spoil Mourinho return

By Ken Martin

FC Porto defender Pedro Emanuel cannot wait to shake his former coach, José Mourinho, by the hand when Chelsea FC visit the Estádio do Dragão for tonight's UEFA Champions League Group H game.

No tension
Security fears may have overshadowed Mourinho's return to the club he led to two European trophies in the past two seasons, but Pedro Emanuel is looking forward to being reunited with him. "Meeting José Mourinho again is special," said the centre-back, who joined Porto in summer 2002 after winning the Portuguese title with Boavista FC the previous year. "Mourinho was the person who brought me to Porto, who took a chance on me. I have an excellent relationship with him because of all the good work he did at the club."

Group permutations
In order to avoid becoming the first Champions League holders to be eliminated at the group stage, Porto must beat Chelsea, whose position at the top of the section is secure, and hope Paris Saint-Germain FC fail to overcome PFC CSKA Mosvka. If Porto can only match PSG's result, they will not go through, while the Russian champions can progress if they win and Porto draw.

Complicated position
At this stage, then, any of the three teams could finish second and Porto's fate is out of their own hands. "It's frustrating having to be reliant on others," Pedro Emanuel told uefa.com. "We've left what we should have done earlier until too late and it complicates matters in a short competition like the Champions League.

Hopeful approach
"It's up to us to do everything we can to win against the best team in the group," he added. "Our main aim was to get through the first phase. On Matchday 5 we did against CSKA what we should have done on Matchday 1, which was beat them. Now we have to take advantage of our last result and fulfil our obligation by defeating Chelsea. We're relying on other teams' results, which is what we wanted to avoid, but we have a good enough side to win and will do our best."

Sentimental journey
Meanwhile, Porto president Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa has cast all sentiment aside and said Mourinho's return to Porto will mean nothing to the team. "There's no special feeling about the return of old coaches and old players," he said. "The taste of victory is the same against Chelsea whether they have a Chinese or an English coach, or a manager from any country."

Single focus
Pinto da Costa urged his club to win the game and not worry about the other match. "We won't go into the tie wondering whether our fate is down to us or not," he said. "We can't go into it thinking about anything other than winning."

Privileged position
He then insisted Mourinho's achievement in winning the Champions League with Porto last term was greater than any feat Chelsea could pull off this season. "What do Chelsea mean? Who are they?" he asked. "In a sporting sense, you cannot compare them to Porto. Roman Abramovich's millions have allowed them to buy the best players in the world at the prices the clubs asked."