Jose Mourinho worried that I would be afraid that Harry Kane would “destroy” me in the Chelsea Cup final
Gary Cahill proved his worth against quality strikers at Chelsea, but one particular test against Harry Kane raised concerns for Jose Mourinho.
The blues faced Tottenham in the 2015 League Cup final, two months after being beaten 5-3 by their London rivals at White Hart Lane.
Kane scored two goals against a Chelsea defense that had Cahill and John Terry as centre-backs in what was just one of their three league defeats of the season.
Mourinho He knew his trusted defensive duo would be desperate for better performances in the Capital One Cup final at Wembley.
After all, Cahill was able to keep other key strikers quiet before the match, such as Wayne Rooney, Sergio Aguero and Romelu Lukaku.
However, Mourinho appeared keen to ask the defender if he would be up to another tough test against Spurs star Kane.
Talking about John Obi Mikel Obi One's PodcastCahill said: “Once, I don't think you would have known this, John, when we were playing Tottenham in the League Cup final and I think a few weeks before that we played them away from home.
“I think Harry Kane scored two or three goals, like they beat us, which is weird against Tottenham, I think it was five, or whatever. He brought me in and said, 'Are you OK? Are you OK for the final?'
“And I was thinking, 'What?' And he said, 'But Harry Kane scored', two or three goals or whatever, I can't remember now, but he said, 'Has that affected you?'
“I almost questioned myself like I lay awake every night worrying about it, thinking about it, thinking, 'Oh, the end is coming, it's going to destroy me.'”
Those fears were not a problem, as they ended up winning the final 2-0.
Earlier in the podcast, Cahill spoke about Mourinho's mind games when commenting on an incident in which the legendary boss threatened to sign Raphael Varane and another defender. Replace him and Terry.
Following up on that, he added: “But that was just a moment of what he was playing at the time, the kind of mind games he was playing, and I also imagine he wouldn't do that to other players.
5
5
5
“So when he asked me that question again, I felt like there was a spider crawling up my spine, thinking, 'Are you questioning… do you think I'm worried about…?' I was like, 'Please play me, play me.'
“I came out thinking, 'I can't believe he's questioning my character there,' like I was thinking I'm going to shit on Kane, I was furious.
“Looking back now, (genius) yeah, yeah, I could picture it when I came out saying (while rubbing his hands), 'How nice, I left it right where I wanted it.'”
“He (Kane) started, we won 2-0, he didn't score, but still, after the game, I went away thinking: 'I knew he would do it!'. He's probably just thinking: 'I got exactly what I wanted from you'.”
Mourinho showed his confidence in Cahill by putting him in the starting line-up League Cup final against Spurs, a decision that proved to be the right one as Chelsea won 2-0 thanks to goals from Terry and Diego Costa.
5
Kane, who scored an incredible 31 goals in all competitions during the 2014/15 season, was unable to add to his tally against the Blues.
Chelsea also won the Premier League title two months later, with Cahill playing all but two of their 38 games throughout their triumphant campaign.
JOIN THE DUGOUT
Have your say on all things talkSPORT by joining 'THE DUGOUT' – our new panel of listeners.
Our aim is to take a deeper look at your perspectives and make sure talkSPORT is the best it can be. Your voice matters and we want to hear it!
Present your innovative ideas and participate in fun locker room polls, surveys and debates.
Just by joining, you'll be entered into a draw to win one of four £50 Amazon vouchers, and you'll be entered into another draw for every survey you complete afterwards.
To join 'The DUGOUT' panel, please Click here.
