LISBON - José Mourinho has arrived in his native Portugal ahead of this afternoon's honorary degree ceremony at the Technical University of Lisbon. The Inter coach told Italian journalists how pleased and proud he was to return to the place where he studied. "I worked very hard for my first degree. For this one I haven't done anything", said the Inter coach, who added that he's not thinking about his team's Serie A lead over Juventus.

"I prefer to think of the points that mathematically separate us from the title. The six points from our last two consecutive home matches against Fiorentina and Reggina are very important, because they came after being knocked out of the Champions League, something that can always affect a team's confidence, which has stayed high, and because they allow us to look the future without depending on the results of the others."

Mourinho confirmed that he has already met and spoken with president Massimo Moratti. He said: "We spoke in Appiano on Friday, when we were together to celebrate Javier Zanetti's appearances, but we had also spoken before. I never made a list of names, like the papers say. I presented a project, a philosophy. And I didn't need to convince anyone. To Moratti I expressed a shared opinion."

With regard to the future Inter, Mourinho added: "We're not looking for reinforcements to play 4-3-3. Our strength is in having players with whom we can play different formations, and it will be the same in the future. For example, against Reggina yesterday we played with two pivots in front of the defence and this allowed us to play against our opponent in a certain way, all thanks to the work we did in the week, a job that is more difficult to do when you play every three days. Did you see how Balotelli played yesterday? He played for the team and if he keeps working like he has lately, he can do it as a wide player in a 4-4-2 in the future."

Mourinho appeared to be very calm when asked about the future of Zlatan Ibrahimovic. He said: "Like all of us, he's very disappointed about the Champions League elimination, but he has replied on the pitch, transforming his frustration into good performances. I'm not worried. (Being top of) the scorers list is an extra motivation for him and who knows if it will help him win the Silver Ball, seeing as the Golden one will go to Cristiano Ronaldo or Messi if they keep doing well in the Champions League."

Asked if convincing a player to stay had ever happened to him before, Mourinho replied: "Yes, with Deco. He wanted to leave Porto after the UEFA Cup victory but he stayed and we won the Champions League the following season. So he left Porto with an even better CV."

Returning to the honorary degree ceremony, the Portuguese coach explained: "I'm very proud. I'm returning to where I studied a lot. It's a special day because they want to reward my work and I will tell this to the youngsters who, like me a few years ago, are studying. I will tell them that they have to start from here by doing well and working hard to build the future they want most."