Jose: My way or no way

If Chelsea do get their man, they will have secured a coach who is eloquent, organised and an excellent tactician, but also forthright and supremely confident in his own abilities.

Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon arrived in Gelsenkirchen last night for a UEFA function, prompting speculation a deal would be signed after the match.

Mourinho held court for 45 minutes yesterday and was cool even under intense questioning. He changed effortlessly between Portuguese, Spanish, English and French and insisted that the constant speculation over his future had not distracted either himself or his players.

He said: "It has not influenced me. I said a few weeks ago that I didn't want to know anything about clubs, presidents, agents - and if you ask the players they will say the same. Everyone is fully concentrated on this match. I don't know if it's my last match for Porto, what I know is that it's the most important match of my career.

"In all professions those that are successful are headhunted. Both clubs are in the final, so it's normal that other clubs are interested in the managers."

Didier Deschamps, the Monaco boss, is another young coach who has been linked with Chelsea, the club where he played in the twilight of his career., but he looks destined for Juventus.

Mourinho has been experimenting and analysing his players in training for the last week but said he is still settled on the original starting XI he has had in mind for several days.

He predicted a close game - 51-49 in Porto's favour, he joked. "We owe a debt to the game, to people who love football, to make it a good final," he added.

"I don't want my team to play defensively, aim for zero-zero and wait for penalties or an isolated goal late on. I want to show the world we can play very good football."

Monaco v Porto, European Cup Final, Gelsenkirchen, tonight, 7.45pm (live on ITV1)