Jose Mourinho believes Chelsea had “lost their identity” in recent years - but now they are contenders to win the Champions League.
Mourinho is back at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night after being appointed as the Benfica manager earlier this month.
The 62-year-old won three Premier League titles during his two spells at Chelsea, the most of any manager in the club’s history.
Chelsea enjoyed several successful years in between Mourinho’s two stints, winning the Champions League in 2012.
Mourinho believes the club lost their way in more recent years, but he feels they are “back on track” under Enzo Maresca.
And asked if he believes this current side could win the Champions League, Mourinho replied: “Chelsea has the potential to do it, I don’t see any reason to say no, Chelsea can’t do it.
“There was a set period where myself, from the outside, was putting some question marks [on it] because it looked like Chelsea had lost their identity as a club. But what happened in the last season got things back on track.
“They gave trust to Enzo [Maresca] and gave his ideas. He’s fitted in well with the philosophy of the club.
“The Conference League is made for a big club to win it. I did it with Roma. It’s quite an easy competition to win with a big club.”
He continued, adding the Club World Cup could turn out to be a launchpad for the Blues: “And then the Club World Cup, I always say the Champions League is much more important, but the [gold] badge means a lot.
“It’s the first time a club has won [the expanded] Club World Cup. Congratulations to them.
“I think that gives them a base of trust and a base of confidence. I feel it at the supporters’ level. I feel it.
“I live five minutes from here and my son comes to the stadium every weekend. It was a period of disappointment. It was a period of doubt. But in this moment, it’s a period of happiness and trust, so Chelsea is back on track.”
