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Ibrahimovic says Chelsea should keep Mourinho

Xinhua, December 18, 2015 Adjust font size:

Paris Saint-Germain striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic thought Chelsea could only be the best under Jose Mourinho, who's sacked by the English Premier League champions on Thursday.

"To play against Chelsea is not an easy game, even if they are struggling a little bit in their own competition," the Swedish super star was quoted by Sky Sports.

The two sides face each other in the round of 16 in European Champions League for the straight second season following Monday's draw made in Nyon, Switzerland.

Last season, Laurent Blanc's side eked out 1-1 and 2-2 draws to seal an aggregate win on away goals, following a quite similar but vise-versa result from the 2013-2014 season in the quarterfinals where PSG won 3-1 at home but lost 2-0 away.

Both PSG and Chelsea are defending their respective domestic league titles this season, but Les Parisiens are leading with a 17-point margin while the Londoners are struggling on the 16th.

"I have to be honest, I haven't seen Mourinho in this situation where he's struggling. Normally I am used to see him battling for the first and second place, so this is something new," said Ibrahimovic.

"We have respect for Chelsea and we do not underestimate Chelsea. They have great players and that experience from the Champions League from before and they have a good coach," added the Swede who's shared a good relationship with Mourinho since played for Inter Milan under the Portuguese.

Asked to comment on Mourinho's future, Ibrahimovic, who'd no clue that under-fire Mourinho was to be sacked as Chelsea manager, said the decision depended with the owner Roman Abramovich, but he hoped the former Real Madrid coach to stay.

"I think it depends on the big boss, Abramovich, what he wants. But I hope for Chelsea that he stays because we want to play against the best."

The Blues are just one point above the relegation zone after having lost nine out of their 16 games so far this season, in stark contrast to last term when they lost just three games en route to the championship. Endit