Jose Mourinho wants to follow Arsene Wenger’s lead

Jose Mourinho has set his sights on following in the footsteps of Arsene Wenger and notching up 1000 games in charge of Chelsea.

Wenger is set oversee his 1000th match in charge of Arsenal when the north Londoners travel to Chelsea on Saturday in the Premier League.

If Chelsea gives me the chance to arrive to 1000 matches, I’ll be the happiest man there is in the world

Arsene Wenger

And Mourinho, who hit the headlines last month for branding Wenger a “specialist in failure” due to the Frenchman not having guided the Gunners to a trophy since 2005, would love to be given the chance to stay at Stamford Bridge for the same length of time as his Arsenal counterpart.

“The best present is to have 1,000 matches in the same club,” Mourinho said.

“If Chelsea gives me the chance to arrive to 1,000 matches, I’ll be the happiest man there is in the world.”

Meanwhile, Mourinho has been charged with improper conduct by the Football Association after being sent off during the 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa.

Mourinho walked onto the pitch to speak to referee Chris Foy after Chelsea midfielder Ramires was shown a red card late in the game.

The Portuguese coach has until 1800GMT on Monday 24 March to respond to the charge.