With the title race looking closer than ever, pressure is an issue for many players. Apparently Mourinho’s recent statements regarding Premier League rivals is a way of putting some of that pressure on to him and relieving the team of unwanted stress which could harm their performances. Chelsea’s David Luiz explained why the Portuguese manager behaved the way he did during the last few weeks. Calling Wenger a specialist in failure and taunting Pellegrini was his way of directing the press’s attention towards him rather than towards the players who are already stressed enough after taking over the first place in the Premier League standings.

According to TEAMtalk, Luiz is not one of those players who crumble under pressure. The Brazilian insisted that he thrives on intense periods such as these and that there is no greater motivation than to perform for a club that is always under the spotlight.

Luiz also spoke about the World Cup and expressed his strong desire to win this trophy. Chelsea’s defender who transferred from Benfica in 2011 considers England a worthy adversary when it comes to winning the trophy. Playing next to Terry, Lampard and Cole and facing players like Wilshere, Rooney or Gerrard on a regular basis got him to realize how powerful the England squad really is.

The 26 year old Brazilian also talked about Eden Hazard who is seen as next in line to become the best player in the world. Luiz looked confident his teammate will become one of the greats sometime in the near future.