'It was easy to recruit for Chelsea' - How Mourinho helped attract Abraham & Mount to Stamford Bridge

In an exclusive interview with Goal, the Blues' former Development Centre officer Michael Beale details the highs and lows of his time at Cobham
Jose Mourinho has a reputation for overlooking youngsters.
It is a perception that the Portuguese has repeatedly attempted to alter but there's no denying that very few academy stars were promoted to Chelsea's senior squad during his first spell in charge, between 2004 and 2007.
Indeed, with Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich having taken over the year before Mourinho's arrival, the Blues spent millions of pounds on proven stars to establish themselves as a major force in the English game.
Nonetheless, Chelsea's former Development Centre officer Michael Beale says that Mourinho's much-publicised appointment and subsequent success – five major domestic trophies in three years – made his job much easier when it came to recruiting players.
Current Chelsea stars Tammy Abraham, Mason Mount and Ruben Loftus-Cheek were all snapped up by the Blues during what Beale says was a "lovely time" to be at Stamford Bridge.
"We brought in Mourinho as manager and then we went from Battersea Park and Harlington to Cobham, which was an unbelievable training ground," Beale tells Goal.
"So, it was easy to recruit for Chelsea because they were a club people were looking at and very excited about.
"The problem [for the young players trying to break through at that time] was that Chelsea were one of the best teams in the world. They had five national team captains at one point!
"These guys were kings; they weren’t normal footballers. They are all legends now: [Michael] Ballack, [Frank] Lampard, Claude Makelele, William Gallas, John Terry, Ashley Cole, Branislav Ivanovic, Arjen Robben, [Didier] Drogba, Nicolas Anelka and Florent Malouda.