Jose Mourinho says he anticipates a warm welcome from Chelsea fans when he returns to Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night with Portuguese champions Benfica for a Champions League group stage clash.

The 62-year-old, who won three Premier League titles, three League Cups and one FA Cup across two spells at Chelsea, was once jeered by the same supporters who had idolised him, with chants of “you’re not special anymore” greeting his return as manager of Manchester United and later Tottenham Hotspur.

Now back in west London following his appointment at Benfica after a short stint at Fenerbahce, Mourinho sought to strike a conciliatory tone at his pre-match press conference.

“Of course I will always be a Blue. I am part of their history and they are part of mine. I helped them become a bigger Chelsea and they helped me become a bigger Jose,” he said. “It was a happy marriage. It was a fantastic decision I made. The reason I came the second time is because I was so happy the first time.”

Mourinho acknowledged that, professionally, he could no longer call himself “a Blue,” but insisted the club still holds a special place in his heart. He noted that Chelsea fans regularly approach him for autographs and photos when he is in London, adding: “I don’t think Chelsea fans will boo.”

Chelsea honoured Mourinho’s legacy by decorating the Ted Drake Suite at Stamford Bridge with photographs of some of his most memorable moments, a gesture the Portuguese coach described as rare in football. “It shows Chelsea is really a big club,” he said.

While Mourinho refrained from criticising current Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca who has come under pressure following recent defeats to Manchester United and Brighton he could not resist drawing comparisons with his own record at the club.

Asked if he still regarded himself as Chelsea’s greatest manager, he replied: “I am the biggest one until someone wins four [league titles]. Chelsea won something before my time. Then they stopped winning, and then my team kept winning.”

He also downplayed Maresca’s success in last season’s UEFA Conference League, remarking: “The Conference League is an easy competition for a big club to win. I did it with Roma. Champions League is much more difficult to win than the Club World Cup, but Chelsea has the potential of course.”

Despite not winning a league title in a decade, Mourinho remains one of football’s most charismatic figures. His Stamford Bridge return promises to rekindle memories of his transformative impact at Chelsea under former owner Roman Abramovich, when he turned the club into serial winners.

As he wrapped up his press conference, Mourinho lingered to exchange greetings with long-time acquaintances in the British media, even posing for selfies. With a familiar smirk, he quipped: “You know how I am. I love it,” before departing.