Mourinho said: “If he comes on for 10 minutes we will not kick him. We will be nice to him.
“If he is on for 10 minutes and we are winning the trophy then we will let him play for free and will make a free-kick for him to score.
“The history of football is full of these situations. I heard dozens of stories about Eusebio having to play because of the cachet of the match. Pele was always involved in these situations too.
“If the consequence is that David Beckham is one day with a swollen ankle, that is fine. But if the consequence is one week out or two weeks out then No.
“I think the game needs him — if not during it he should do something special before the game but I think the game needs him.”
