Chelsea old boy Salomon Kalou backing Jose Mourinho to stabilise Stamford Bridge

 
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Julian Bennetts6 June 2013

Jose Mourinho will bring stability to Chelsea and inspire a new generation to success, according to striker Salomon Kalou, who played under him at Stamford Bridge.

The Portuguese this week returned to Chelsea for a second spell as manager, signing a four-year contract with the club.

Mourinho won five major trophies during his first spell at Chelsea and signed Kalou from Feyenoord for £8million in 2006 — the year before his exit.

Chelsea have since gone on to win Premier League, Champions League and Europa League titles and Kalou, now playing for French club Lille, believes Mourinho can repeat his previous success by bringing through a talented group of young players at the club.

Kalou is also backing his former boss to end the instability that has dogged Chelsea in recent years, even though Mourinho’s rocky relationship with his big-name stars at Real Madrid played a part in his departure from the Bernabeu at the end of the season.

“Jose is still the right man for that club,” said Kalou, who left Chelsea last summer. “He brings stability wherever he goes and Chelsea need that more than anything.

“You have the players and experience to win trophies but you need someone who can direct everything and, when he is there, everyone will listen.

“He is a leader. He brought the stability they needed when they won their first trophies with him in 2004.

“He is a winner and will bring that back to the club again. The club have won every trophy but you need that stability to bring through a new generation of winning trophies.”

Despite Kalou’s talk of stability, Mourinho has never been at a club for longer than the three years and three months he spent at Chelsea between 2004 and 2007 but the 50-year-old former Porto coach claimed this week to be more mature and ready to set down roots in London again.

But as Chelsea move on to their 10th manager — including interim bosses Guus Hiddink and Rafael Benitez — since Roman Abramovich bought the club a decade ago, Kalou insists Mourinho is back to stay. And he says the key to Mourinho’s success is his honesty with his players. He added: “Every man who plays under Jose could never say, ‘Jose promised me this but then did something else’.

“Jose is always honest to his players. Whether you play or not, he’s always someone who will tell you the truth. If you deserve it he will give you it, if you don’t, he won’t. That’s what players respect about him.

“Since I signed for my first year in Chelsea he told me, ‘if you work hard you will always be in my team’. And I always was in his team because that’s what he said. You have to work hard to be in his team. Whether it was in the first minute or last in a game, I’m still going to make the run he asked me to because you know if you do it, it’s what you’re going to get because he’s a man of his word.”

And although Kalou is happy playing in France, he admits he still dreams of returning to grace the Premier League one day. The 27-year-old striker scored 60 goals in six years at Stamford Bridge, despite having to compete with players such as Didier Drogba, Nicolas Anelka and Andriy Shevchenko for a starting spot.

“Playing in the Premier League was amazing and I want to have that feeling again,” said Ivory Coast international Kalou.

“It is still the best league in the world. The supporters there are so passionate and know everything about the game. You see fans making fun of their opponents and singing songs and in other places you don’t have that. It gives England an extra edge.”

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