London: Chelsea football club manager Jose Mourinho insists Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid would struggle to win the English Premier League (EPL).
Spanish football did not satisfy Mourinho, despite winning La Liga in Madrid with a record-breaking 100 points and 121 goals in 2012, because it lacks England’s competitive edge, reports dailymail.co.uk.
Chelsea were crowned champions with three games to spare but Mourinho feels the club did it the hard way as the Premier League provides no sure things like La Liga.
“I was in Spain, but I didn’t enjoy it because I won a La Liga title with a record 100 points and 121 goals. But in reality we played only three or four tough matches all season. I also lost a title with 92 points, but again playing only four or five tough matches in the season,” he said on Monday.
“(In EPL) You feel the pressure that you have to win every match because if you don’t you are not champions. You have to win and win and win. But it is a big, big gap between the giants and the others.
“I think the difference between the two leagues (Premier League and La Liga) is huge. Would they (Barcelona or Real Madrid) win the Premier League? Maybe yes. Maybe not.”
Despite no English clubs reaching the final eight of this season’s Champions League tournament, Mourinho is adamant the Premier League remains the most demanding competition in Europe.
The 52-year-old used Chelsea’s 2-4 defeat against League One club Bradford City in the FA Cup in January as a prime example of how there is always the possibility of an upset in the English game.
“In matches in other countries you can win matches when you are resting. In Spain and in Italy, I won lots of matches resting. “This season I rested a few players against Bradford and I lost. And that is English football. This is the reality of the Premier League. You have no time. It’s not just about the number of matches, it’s the intensity.” (IANS)
