Mourinho puts Rooney approach on hold

Chelsea beat Aston Villa 2-1 at Stamford Bridge in English Premier League.

LONDON:

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho says he will not try to unsettle Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney by making a renewed bid for the striker before the teams meet on Monday.

Mourinho has already seen two bids for Rooney rejected by United and has made it apparent that the 27-year-old England forward is his top priority in the transfer window, which closes on September 2.

However, although he hinted that he has not given up in his pursuit of Rooney, he said he would not seek to gain an advantage over David Moyes’ team by creating fresh headlines about the former Everton player.

“I don’t want Chelsea to do it before we go there,” said Mourinho, after his side edged Aston Villa 2-1 in a keenly contested match.

“Everybody in the club, in the board, they agree with me. They share that opinion. There is time to do things we did before, we will do later.

“But I think this period, by the ethical point of view, is a period where we’re going to be quiet.”

Chelsea secured victory over Villa thanks to a 73rd-minute header from Branislav Ivanovic, after Antonio Luna’s early own goal was cancelled out by Villa striker Christian Benteke moments before half-time.

The game had been brought forward due to Chelsea’s involvement in the UEFA Super Cup and victory handed Mourinho’s side an early three-point lead in the Premier League, but the encounter was marked by controversy.

Villa manager Paul Lambert was incensed that Ivanovic was only booked for catching Benteke with his elbow and that John Terry escaped after the ball struck his outstretched arm in the Chelsea area in stoppage time.

Mourinho, though, felt Villa’s robust approach to the match at Stamford Bridge meant they had little cause for complaint.

“They fought a lot to get a result. I don’t think they play a lot, because they don’t play a lot. Every ball the goalkeeper has, the goalkeeper kicks,” he said.

Mourinho insisted that the second-half tussle between Ivanovic and Benteke, which happened yards in front of the two dug-outs and sparked angry scenes on the touchline, was nothing more than a ‘football fight’.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 23^rd, 2013.

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