MANCHESTER, England — Jose Mourinho would “love” to sign Eden Hazard for Manchester United, but admits it is unlikely Chelsea would ever allow the Belgian to move to Old Trafford.
Hazard was part of Mourinho’s title-winning Chelsea team in 2015 and last week listed the Portuguese coach as the manager he would most like to play for again.
The forward, who has scored eight goals in 10 games this season, is yet to sign a new contract at Stamford Bridge and has been linked with a move to Real Madrid.
“I would love to have him in Manchester United but I don’t think Chelsea will sell him to Man United so it’s a not problem,” Mourinho told a news conference on Friday.
“Chelsea is led by intelligent and experienced people in football and they would never sell Eden to Man United.”
Hazard’s form this season has seen him branded the “best player in Europe” by his Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri, whose team United face on Saturday.
Mourinho is hoping to win at Stamford Bridge for the first time as United manager and, more importantly, start climbing the table after a disappointing start. His team sits in eighth place in the table with 13 points.
While the focus has been on United’s poor form and the duel at the top between Manchester City and Liverpool, Chelsea have quietly amassed 20 points from their first eight games to sit second.
But Mourinho believes Sarri’s side should be considered title challengers, especially with Hazard in such fine form.
“Their results speak by themselves,” said Mourinho. “Obviously they are not playing Champions League. And that puts them just on the Premier League and in the Premier League the results speak for themselves.
“Very good results, top of the league and of course lots of good players, but history says that when Eden Hazard is the best player of the Premier League, Chelsea is the champion.
“It happened with me and Antonio [Conte], and this season, it is still the beginning of course, but if he is the best player of the Premier League until now, which I think he is until now, Chelsea is top of the league because he is the kind of player who can make a huge difference.”
Mourinho is also dealing with injury problems ahead of the trip to Stamford Bridge with Alexis Sanchez and Marouane Fellaini both doubts, although Nemanja Matic and Luke Shaw have both travelled after missing international duty.
Sanchez capped the dramatic comeback against Newcastle with a stoppage-time winner and Mourinho has insisted he wants his team to always play with as much attacking intent as they did in the second half against Rafael Benitez’s side.
“We try,” he said. “The key is for the players to be able to do it.”
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