Premier League chief welcomes back Mourinho's stardust

Chief executive Richard Scudamore has welcomed the return of Jose Mourinho to the Premier League, saying the outspoken Chelsea manager is "stardust" for the competition.

"It is absolutely essential we have talent," Scudamore told reporters on Thursday ahead of the opening round of fixtures at the weekend.

"Are we delighted to see Mourinho? Of course we are because he's a successful character and a talking point. He's stardust."

The Portuguese rejoined Chelsea in the close season, having left the west London club in September 2007 after winning the league in 2005 and 2006.

Mourinho won the Champions League with Inter Milan in 2010 as well as two Serie A titles before spending three seasons at Real Madrid where he picked up a La Liga crown and the King's Cup.

Controversy is never far away from the 50-year-old, who replaced the unpopular Rafael Benitez at Stamford Bridge, but Scudamore said he was a personality the game needed.

"If you go back 15 years the players were the only stardust we had. The game's evolved, now the likes of (Alex) Ferguson, (David) Moyes, Mourinho, AVB (Andre Villas-Boas) are big characters in the game and we needed them," he added.