Jose Mourinho keen on extending Mark Schwarzer's Chelsea stay

Jose Mourinho wants Mark Schwarzer to stay at Chelsea

Jose Mourinho has admitted the club are keen to tie down Australian shot-stopper Mark Schwarzer for a longer period, after the former Fulham man impressed at the back-end of last season.

Mourinho raised eyebrows when he made the move for the 41-year-old in July 2013, but it proved to be a shrewd move as Schwarzer was a wise understudy for number one Petr Cech, who suffered with a number of injuries towards the end of the season. The former Middlesbrough man made 12 appearances for the Blues and that included a pivotal clash against Atletico Madrid in Chelsea’s Champions League semi-final clash this year.

Mourinho has already opted against offering Frank Lampard a new contract, as well as Ashley Cole, however, he has plans for Schwarzer.

Schwarzer signed a one-year deal at Chelsea and that is due to expire this summer, however, Mourinho is keen to keep Schwarzer, according to the goalkeeper, for the 2014/15 campaign and is planning a new deal.

Schwarzer told reporters: “I’ve had messages from the boss, he’s very keen for me to re-sign with the club.

“And that’s all I really need to know, that he wants to keep me at the club and I’ll leave the rest up to the powers-that-be to sort it all out.

“I’m confident it’ll be sorted out in the next week or two.

“I still want to stay in Europe as long as possible. If I have the chance to stay at a club like Chelsea, I’d love to do so because it’s an unbelievable experience.

“I had opportunities to play in the Champions League semi-final and vie for the (Premier League) title – and that’s something invaluable and something I hadn’t experienced before. And I wouldn’t change anything for it.”