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Jose Mourinho reveals love for League Cup ahead of Chelsea’s final vs. Tottenham

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho celebrates

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho celebrates

AFP/Getty Images

The first trophy Jose Mourinho won as Chelsea boss was the 2005 League Cup. He won it again in 2007 and the importance of this competition is not lost on the Portuguese manager.

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10 years since he first tasted success in the tournament, he could win it again on Sunday.

Chelsea face London rivals at Tottenham Hotspur in the Capital One Cup (to give it its officially title) at Wembley Stadium with Mourinho hoping to win his first piece of silverware since heading back to Stamford Bridge as manager.

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Speaking to the media on Friday, the self-proclaimed “Special One” shared his thoughts on how Chelsea helped the League Cup become more respected, and how his team are focused on winning the title.

“Lots of teams have followed us since then when we took the League Cup as a real competition, as a real challenge. It is a big competition,” Mourinho said. “I just think about the moment - only this game. We have a final to win and nothing else matters. I don’t think if we win the cup final we will win the league, or if we lose it we will lose the league. It is just a game we have to play and after that the cup talk is over.”

With Chelsea off Premier League duty this weekend due to the League Cup final, they could see their lead at the top of the table reduced to two points if Manchester City beat Liverpool.

If the Blues lose to Tottenham in the final and are just two points ahead of City after this weekend, but with a game in hand, do you think Mourinho’s boys will start to feel the pressure mounting on them? Spurs beat Chelsea 5-3 on New Year’s Day in the Premier League with Harry Kane stealing the show, but Mauricio Pochettino’s boys lost to Fiorentina in the Europa League on Thursday in Florence and have had little time to recover ahead of the final. So, Chelsea has to be the favorites.

It would certainly be huge for Mourinho to land some silverware on Sunday. No matter if it’s “just the League Cup” and despite the Premier League title being his main goal for the 2014-15 campaign.

Follow @JPW_NBCSports