Football
Rob Dawson, Correspondent 6y

Jose Mourinho: Premier League clubs won't dominate Champions League

Jose Mourinho has said the strength of the Premier League and the lack of a winter break will prevent English clubs from dominating the Champions League this season.

The Premier League has failed to provide a Champions League winner since Chelsea lifted the trophy in 2012.

Leicester City were England's last remaining participant last season, reaching the quarterfinals.

The Premier League looks set to have five representatives in the knockout stages this time with Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham either already qualified or poised to do so.

But Mourinho is not predicting an English charge to the final in Kiev and told the Daily Mirror: "I don't think so because I always say the Champions League only starts in February.

"And in February, the English teams are after December and January where we can play 20 matches over two months and the Germans, the French, the Spanish, the Italians, they all come from a winter break. So I think they arrive in better conditions than the English teams.

"It's also a fact that any match you play in this country, if you don't go strong, you lose."

United have a perfect record in the Champions League this season, winning their first four games.

They face Basel in Switzerland on Wednesday, where a point would be enough to take top spot in Group A with a game to spare.

^ Back to Top ^