Chelsea's Portuguese coach Jose Mourinho gives a press conference in London on December 4. National teams are required to play far too many matches, Mourinho said in a newspaper interview. - AFP
National teams are required to play far too many matches, Chelsea's Portuguese coach Jose Mourinho said in a newspaper interview.
"There are too many matches with minor teams and because of this when there are serious matches players are at risk of not being at the level that people expect," he told Portuguese sports daily O Jogo on Monday.
"It is too much to have groups of seven to eight teams that play 14, 15, 16 matches to qualify, which serve mostly to injure players," he added.
Mourinho, who has guided Chelsea to two successive Premiership titles after taking FC Porto to the Champions League triumph, suggested that qualifying groups should instead consist of just three or four national teams matched by their ability.
"The best would play against the best and the worst against the worst. Instead of Portugal playing against Kazakhstan and England against San Marino, let Kazakhstan and San Marino play against Andorra," he said.
Mourinho, who is under contract with Chelsea until 2010, has said he would like to coach Portugal before retiring from football.example : England Vs Andorra or something