Jose Mourinho said he is hurt by the way some "selfish" national
federations "simply do not care" to liaise with Chelsea over player
fitness, as he confirmed that Diego Costa is out of Tuesday's Champions
League match against Maribor with a hamstring injury.
While Mourinho did not directly name Spain, the implication was clear
as he later complained he has never received a phone call from La Roja boss Vicente del Bosque -- who says he will only play Costa when fit.
The
Chelsea manager spoke at length about national federations who do not
regularly check in on the fitness habits of their players, stating that
Costa is now out with "an injury, not an almost injury" and that he has
"no idea" how long the absence will be.
"Tomorrow, he cannot play. After that, let's see," he told his pregame press conference on Monday.
Mourinho had previously made sarcastic jibes about how Spain had used Costa for "big games" such as Slovakia and Luxembourg after calling for the striker to be rested,
and spoke on Monday about how there are "no laws" to guide the
situation, "just the mentality of national team coaches and national
teams."
He stated: "It's up to them to take care of players or be selfish. I
don't tell players not to [join up with their national teams]. I
stimulate players to go, I like players to go. We like our players to
succeed in national teams and play in big competitions, like the
European Championships and World Cup, so we are always positive about
our players to go.
"Sometimes you have national coaches and
medical departments that want to establish a relationship and they are
interested in the players, their physical condition, their habits. Some
others they simply don't care. This is not something we can resolve. I
cannot ring the federations and say I want to speak to the coach, or the
doctor wants to speak to their doctor. It's something I cannot resolve.
"I
had in my career others in permanent contact. I have others where, year
after year, I don't have a single SMS or phone call. From our point of
view, we will keep our way of thinking or feel for the national teams.
Players should be proud to play for national teams."
Mourinho then revealed that the only manager to contact him during the last week was England's Roy Hodgson.
"We have a correct [relationship]," he said. "He called me once, the time he called me was completely open.
"Last
week, [Gary] Neville was here as journalist, but if Gary wants to come
here as [England] assistant, the door is open. Even more open than as
journalist!
"This is the situation, the only one from all national
teams that had personal, direct contact with me. For example, when I
was with Real Madrid and Luka Modric, Igor Stimac [the coach of Croatia]
would have three phone calls a week."
Mourinho was then directly
asked whether he had ever received a phone call off Del Bosque: "No. It
hurts, but we have to live with this situation. I don't say it's
compulsory for players to come back in good conditions."
The Stamford Bridge boss also confirmed that both Andre Schurrle and Ramires are out for Tuesday's match.
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