José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix,
OIH, known as
José Mourinho (
Portuguese pronunciation: [ʒuˈzɛ moˈɾiɲu], born 26 January 1963), is a Portuguese
football manager and former football player who is the current manager of
Chelsea.
[1] He is regarded by a number of players, coaches, and commentators as the world's best manager and as one of the greatest managers of all time.
[2][3][4][5] Mourinho began his involvement in professional football as a player in the
Portuguese Second Division. He studied
sports science in
Technical University of Lisbon and attended coaching courses in Britain. In Lisbon, he worked as a
physical education teacher and had spells working as a youth team coach, a scout, and an assistant manager. In the early 1990s, he became an interpreter for Sir
Bobby Robson at
Sporting CP and
Porto in Portugal, and
Barcelona in Spain. He remained at the
Catalonian club working with Robson's successor
Louis van Gaal.
Mourinho impressed with brief but successful managerial periods at
Benfica and
União de Leiria, taking the latter to their highest ever league finish. He returned to Porto in early 2002 as head coach, winning the
Primeira Liga,
Taça de Portugal, and
UEFA Cup in 2003. In the next season, Mourinho guided the team to victory in the
Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, to the top of the league for a second time, and won the highest honour in European club football, the
UEFA Champions League. Mourinho moved to Chelsea the following year and won the
Premier League title with a record 95 points, the club's first league title in 50 years, and the
League Cup in his first season. In his second year, Chelsea retained the Premier League and in 2006–07 he took the club to an
FA Cup and League Cup
double. Mourinho left Chelsea in September 2007, amidst reports of a rift with club owner
Roman Abramovich.
[6]
In 2008, Mourinho moved to
Serie A club
Internazionale. Within three months he had won his first Italian honour, the
Supercoppa Italiana, and completed the season by winning the
Serie A title. In 2009–10, Inter became the first Italian club to win the
treble of Serie A,
Coppa Italia and the UEFA Champions League, also the first time Inter had won the latter competition since 1965. Beside
Ernst Happel,
Ottmar Hitzfeld,
Jupp Heynckes and
Carlo Ancelotti, Mourinho is one of only five coaches to have won the
European Cup with two different teams.
[7] He won the first ever
FIFA Ballon d'Or Best Coach Award in 2010. He then signed with
Real Madrid in 2010, winning the
Copa del Rey in his first season. The following year, he won the
La Liga and became the fourth coach, after
Tomislav Ivić, Ernst Happel, and
Giovanni Trapattoni, to have won league titles in at least four different countries: Portugal, England, Italy, and Spain.
[8] After leaving Madrid in June 2013, Mourinho returned to England to manage Chelsea for a second spell.
[9]
Because of his tactical knowledge, charismatic (but also very controversial) personality and what his opponents regard as cynical emphasis on getting results over playing beautiful football, he is often seen, by both admirers and critics, as the successor of legendary Argentine manager
Helenio Herrera.
[10][11]
Early life and career
Formative years and education
From an early age, football was a major part of Mourinho's life. Footballing commitments in
Porto and
Lisbon meant that Félix was often separated from his son. As a teenager, Mourinho travelled to attend his father's weekend matches and when his father became a coach, Mourinho began observing training sessions and scouting opposing teams.
[15]Mourinho wanted to follow in the footsteps of his father by becoming a footballer and so he joined the Belenenses youth team. Graduating to the senior level, he played at
Rio Ave (where his father was coach), Belenenses, and Sesimbra. He lacked the requisite pace and power to become a professional and chose to focus on becoming a football coach instead.
[13][16][17]
His mother enrolled him in a business school, Mourinho dropped out on his first day, deciding he would rather focus on sport, and chose to attend the Instituto Superior de Educação Física (ISEF),
Technical University of Lisbon, to study
sports science.
[14] He taught
physical education at various schools and after five years, he had earned his diploma, receiving consistently good marks throughout the course.
[15] After attending coaching courses held by the
English and
Scottish Football Associations, former
Scotlandmanager
Andy Roxburgh took note of the young Portuguese's drive and attention to detail.
[18] Mourinho sought to redefine the role of coach in football by mixing coaching theory with motivational and psychological techniques.
[13]
Entering management
After leaving his job as a school coach, Mourinho looked for paths into professional management in his hometown and became youth team coach at Vitória de Setúbal in the early 1990s. Working his way up the ladder, he accepted the position of assistant manager at
Estrela da Amadora,
[18] then was a scout at
Ovarense. Mourinho yearned for greater challenges and, in 1992, an opportunity arose to work as a translator for a top foreign coach. Sir
Bobby Robson had been appointed as the new manager of
Lisbon club
Sporting CP and the Englishman required a local coach with a good command of English to work as his
interpreter.
[16]
Initially a step away from management, Mourinho began discussing tactics and coaching with Robson in his interpreting role.
[16] Robson was sacked by Sporting in December 1993, but Portuguese rivals
FC Porto appointed him as their head coach and Mourinho moved with him, continuing to coach and interpret for players at the new club.
[18] This Porto team, consisting of players like
Ljubinko Drulović,
Domingos Paciência,
Rui Barros,
Jorge Costa and
Vítor Baía went on to dominate Portuguese football the following years. With Robson as head coach and Mourinho as his assistant, Porto reached the
1993–94 UEFA Champions League semi-finals, and won the
1993–94 Taça de Portugal, the
1994–95 and
1995–96 Portuguese championship, and the 1994, 1995 and 1996
Portuguese Super Cup (the later with a
5–0 victory over
arch-rivals Benfica, in what proved to be Robson's last game at Porto before moving to Barcelona, earning Robson the nickname "Bobby Five-O" in Portugal). Such was the impact of Robson and Mourinho on making Porto a lasting team, that the club managed to claim three more consecutive championships after they had left.
After two years at Porto the duo moved again, switching to
FC Barcelona in 1996.
[19] Mourinho and his family moved to
Barcelona and he gradually became a prominent figure of Barcelona's staff by translating at press conferences, planning practice sessions, and helping players through tactical advice and analyses of the opposition. Robson and Mourinho's styles complemented each other: the Englishman favoured an attacking style, while Mourinho covered defensive options, and the Portuguese's love of planning and training combined with Robson's direct man-management. The partnership was fruitful and Barcelona finished the season by winning the
European Cup Winners' Cup. Robson moved club the following season but this time Mourinho did not follow as Barcelona were keen to retain him as assistant manager.
[18] The two remained good friends and Mourinho later reflected on the effect Robson had had upon him:
One of the most important things I learnt from Bobby Robson is that when you win, you shouldn't assume you are
the team, and when you lose, you shouldn't think you are rubbish.
[18]
He began working with Robson's successor,
Louis van Gaal, and he learnt much from the Dutchman's conscientious style. Both assistant and head coach combined their studious approach to the game and Barcelona won
La Liga twice in Van Gaal's first two years as coach.
[18] Van Gaal saw that his number two had the promise to be more than a skilled assistant. He let Mourinho develop his own independent coaching style and entrusted him with the coaching duties of
FC Barcelona B.
[19] Van Gaal also let Mourinho take charge of the first team (acting as Mourinho's assistant himself) for certain trophies, like the
Copa Catalunya, which Mourinho won in 2000.
[20]
Managerial career
Benfica
When I spoke with van Gaal about going back to Portugal to be an assistant at Benfica, he said: "No, don't go. Tell Benfica if they want a first-team coach you will go; if they want an assistant you will stay."
[22]
Mourinho was highly critical of Ferreira, whom he had first encountered as his teacher at ISEF and later lambasted the veteran coach by stating, "This could be the story of a donkey who worked for 30 years but never became a horse."
[23] Only weeks after being given the job at Benfica, Mourinho's mentor, Sir Bobby Robson, offered him the assistant manager's role at
Newcastle United. Such was Robson's desperation for Mourinho to join him he offered to step down after two years in charge and hand over the reins to Mourinho. Mourinho turned the offer down and said he knew Robson would never step down at the club he loved.
[24]
Mourinho and Mozer proved a popular combination, enjoying a 3–0 win against
fierce rivals Sporting in December.
[25][26] Their reign, however, appeared to be at risk after Benfica's election turned against club president
João Vale e Azevedo, and the newly elected
Manuel Vilarinho said that he would instate ex-Benfica player
Toni as his new coach.
[19] Although Vilarinho had no intention of firing him immediately, Mourinho used the victory over Sporting to test the president's loyalty and he asked for a contract extension.
[25] Vilarinho refused the demand and Mourinho resigned from his position immediately. He left the club on 5 December 2000 after just nine league games in charge. Upon later reflection, Vilarinho rued his poor judgement and expressed his frustration at losing Mourinho:
[Put me] back then [and] I would do exactly the opposite: I would extend his contract. Only later I realised that one's personality and pride cannot be put before the interest of the institution we serve.
[25]
União de Leiria
Mourinho found a new managerial post in July 2001 with
União de Leiria.
[27] During his time at União de Leiria, the team was on a run contesting places as high as third and fourth by January. After a 2–1 win against
Paços de Ferreira on 27 January, the team was in third place, one point ahead of both Porto and Benfica and three points behind the top of the league table. Mourinho's successes at Leiria did not go unrecognised and he caught the attention of larger Portuguese clubs.
[19]
Porto
He was then hand-picked in late January 2002 by
FC Porto to replace
Octávio Machado. At this time, Porto was in fifth place in the Liga (behind Sporting,
Boavista, Leiria and Benfica), had been eliminated from the Portuguese Cup and was in last place in their Champions League second stage group. Mourinho guided the team to third place that year after a strong 15-game run (W–D–L: 11–2–2) and gave the promise of "making Porto champions next year."
2002–03
During the pre-season, Mourinho put detailed reports of the team training on the club website. The reports were filled with formal vocabulary, as, for instance, he referred to a 20 km jog as an extended
aerobic exercise. While they attracted some scorn for the pretentiousness, others praised the innovation and the application of a more scientific approach to the training methods practised in Portugal. One of the key aspects in Mourinho-era Porto was his quick wit and the pressuring play, which started at the offensive line, dubbed
pressão alta ("high pressure"). The physical and combative abilities of the teams' defenders and midfielders allowed Porto to apply pressure from the offensive lines and forced opponents either to concede the ball or try longer, uncertain passes.
In 2003, Mourinho won his first
Primeira Liga with a 27–5–2 record, 11 points clear of Benfica, the team he quit two years earlier. The total of 86 points out of the possible maximum of 102 was a Portuguese record since the rule of three points per win was introduced. Mourinho also won the
Taça de Portugal, beating former club Leiria in
the final, and the
UEFA Cup final against
Celtic, both in May 2003.
2003–04
The following season witnessed further successes: he led Porto to victory in the one-match
Portuguese Super Cup, beating Leiria 1–0. They lost, however, the
UEFA Super Cup1–0 to
A.C. Milan, with
Andriy Shevchenko scoring the solitary goal. The team was dominant in the
Primeira Liga and finished the season with a perfect home record, an eight-point advantage, and an unbeaten run that only ended against
Gil Vicente; they secured the title five weeks before the end of the season. Porto lost the
2004 Taça de Portugal Final to Benfica in May 2004, but two weeks later, Mourinho won a greater prize: the
UEFA Champions League, with a
3–0 win over
AS Monaco in Germany. The club had eliminated
Manchester United,
Olympique Lyonnais, and
Deportivo La Coruña and their sole defeat of the competition came against
Real Madrid in the group round.
In the first leg between Manchester United and Porto, United manager Sir
Alex Ferguson confronted Mourinho after
Roy Keane received a red card for stamping on Vítor Baía.
[28]In the second leg, Porto were on the verge of an away goals defeat when Costinha scored a goal with only little more than thirty seconds left for the official 90 minutes time, to win the tie and Mourinho celebrated the goal flamboyantly. Mourinho's Porto win over Ferguson's United foreshadowed a move to the
Premier League managing
Chelsea, where the two men would enjoy a competitive but respectful relationship. In 2005, after Chelsea clinched the Premier League title, Ferguson had his players form a guard of honour at Chelsea's next game at
Old Trafford[29][better source needed], a favour that Mourinho returned in 2007 at
Stamford Bridge after Ferguson's squad were confirmed league champions
[30]).
[31]
Liverpool are a team that interests everyone and Chelsea does not interest me so much because it is a new project with lots of money invested in it. I think it is a project which, if the club fail to win everything, then [Roman]
Abramovich could retire and take the money out of the club. It's an uncertain project. It is interesting for a coach to have the money to hire quality players but you never know if a project like this will bring success.
[32]
Liverpool offered their managerial position to
Rafael Benítez and Mourinho instead accepted a large offer from
Roman Abramovich and pledged his immediate future to Chelsea.
[32]
Chelsea
Mourinho moved to
Chelsea in June 2004, becoming one of the highest paid managers in football with a salary of
£4.2 million a year, subsequently raised in 2005 to £5.2 million.
[33] In a press conference upon joining the English side, Mourinho said, "Please don't call me arrogant, but I'm European champion and I think I'm a special one," which resulted in the media dubbing him "The Special One".
[34]
Mourinho recruited his backroom staff from Porto, consisting of assistant manager
Baltemar Brito, fitness coach
Rui Faria, chief scout
André Villas-Boas, and goalkeeping coach
Silvino Louro. He retained the services of
Steve Clarke, a long-serving former player at Chelsea, who had also performed an assistant managerial-type role under previous managers at the club. In terms of spending, Mourinho carried on where his predecessor
Claudio Ranieri left off, as, bankrolled by Roman Abramovich, he spent in excess of £70 million in transfer fees on players such as
Tiago (£10 million) from
Benfica,
Michael Essien (£24.4 million) from
Olympique Lyonnais,
Didier Drogba (£24 million) from
Olympique de Marseille,
Mateja Kežman (£5.4 million) from
PSV, and Porto pair
Ricardo Carvalho (£19.8 million) and
Paulo Ferreira (£13.3 million).
2004–05
Under Mourinho, Chelsea built on the potential developed in the previous season. By early December, they were at the top of the
Premier League table and had reached the knock-out stages of the
Champions League.
He secured his first trophy by winning the
League Cup against
Liverpool 3–2 (
AET) in
Cardiff. Towards the end of the match, Mourinho was escorted from the touchline after putting his finger to his mouth in the direction of Liverpool fans, as a response to taunts directed towards him whilst Liverpool were leading, before the equalising goal.
Chelsea met Barcelona in the Champions League round-of-sixteen, a highly contested match where the Blues lost away in the first leg 2–1 but advanced on aggregate winning at home 4–2. Mourinho missed the chance of back-to-back Champions League successes when Chelsea were knocked out of the competition by a controversial goal in the semi-finals by eventual winners Liverpool.
[35]
Under Mourinho, Chelsea secured their first
top-flight domestic title in 50 years, setting a string of
English football records in the process, including the most points ever achieved in the Premier League (95), and the fewest goals conceded (15).
2005–06
Chelsea started the next season well. They defeated
Arsenal 2–1 to win the
2005 FA Community Shield, and topped the Premier League from the first weekend of the
2005–06season. Chelsea beat rivals Manchester United 3–0 to win their second consecutive Premier League title and Mourinho's fourth domestic title in a row. After the presentation of his championship medal, Mourinho threw his medal and blazer into the crowd. He was awarded a second medal within minutes which he also threw into the crowd.
2006–07
The
2006–07 season saw growing media speculation that Mourinho would leave the club at the season's conclusion, due to alleged poor relations with owner Roman Abramovich and a power struggle with sporting director
Frank Arnesen and Abramovich advisor
Piet de Visser. Mourinho later cleared doubts regarding his future at
Stamford Bridge, stating that there would only be two ways for him to leave Chelsea: if Chelsea were not to offer him a new contract in June 2010, and if Chelsea were to sack him.
[36]
The signing of Ukrainian striker
Andriy Shevchenko in the summer of 2006 for a club record fee would also prove to be a point of contention between Mourinho and Abramovich. Shevchenko, at the time of his signing, was one of the most highly regarded strikers in Europe during his time with Milan, where he won the Champions League,
Scudetto, and
Ballon d'Or awards in his seven years in Milan. Chelsea had attempted to sign Shevchenko in the preceding two years but Milan rebuffed Abramovich's interest in him. Shevchenko's first season at Chelsea was viewed as a major disappointment by the Chelsea fans as he only scored four league goals and 14 in all competitions.
Mourinho with Chelsea in 2007.
Shevchenko's strike partner,
Didier Drogba, had the highest scoring season of his career that year and this led Shevchenko to be dropped from the starting line-up towards the end of the season by Mourinho. Notably, in the
Champions League semi-final match at
Anfield, Shevchenko was not even included on the bench. Abramovich's insistence on Mourinho playing the Ukrainian was widely viewed as a further source of friction between the two men. The other high profile arrival besides Shevchenko was German captain
Michael Ballack, a free agent from
Bayern Munichwho was signed to strengthen the midfield. The Icelandic striker
Eiður Guðjohnsen, departed the club for
FC Barcelona.
Despite the unrest Chelsea won the
League Cup again by defeating Arsenal at the
Millennium Stadium. The possibility, however, of the quadruple was brought to an end on 1 May 2007 when Liverpool eliminated Chelsea from the Champions League on penalties at Anfield, following a 1–1 aggregate draw. Days later, Chelsea drew 1–1 with Arsenal at the
Emirates Stadium, which secured the Premier League title for Manchester United. This was Mourinho's first season without a league title win in five years. Mourinho led Chelsea to a 1–0 victory against Manchester United in the
2007 FA Cup Final, winning in the first final to be played at the rebuilt
Wembley Stadium. This was his first FA Cup win which meant that he had won every domestic trophy available to a Premier League manager.
There was, however, to be further friction between Mourinho and Abramovich when
Avram Grant was appointed as Director of Football, despite objections from Mourinho. Grant's position was further enhanced by being given a seat on the board. In spite of these tensions, the 2007–08 transfer season would see the departure of Dutch winger
Arjen Robben to
Real Madrid and French midfielder
Florent Malouda moved to Chelsea.
2007–08
In the first match of the
2007–08 season, Chelsea beat
Birmingham City 3–2 to set a new record of 64 consecutive home league matches without defeat. Despite with it surpassing the record set by Liverpool between 1978 and 1981
[37] the start to the
2007–08 season was less successful as previous starts. The team lost at
Aston Villa and followed this with a goalless draw at home to
Blackburn Rovers. Their opening game in the
Champions League saw them only manage a 1–1 home draw against the Norwegian team
Rosenborg BK in front of an almost half-empty stadium.
Mourinho unexpectedly left Chelsea on 20 September 2007 "by mutual consent," although there had been a series of disagreements with owner Roman Abramovich.
[6] The Chelsea board held an emergency meeting and decided it was time to part with their manager. Mourinho left as the most successful manager in Chelsea's history, having won six trophies for the club in three years. He was also undefeated in all home league games. Avram Grant succeeded José Mourinho as Chelsea manager but failed to win any trophies in his year in charge and would be sacked at the end of the 2007–08 season. Grant's squad managed to reach the
final of the Champions League (something Mourinho failed to achieve in his three years at Chelsea), reach the
final of the League Cup, and maintained the unbeaten home streak in the Stamford Bridge. Grant's Chelsea also finished second in the Premier League.
Internazionale
On 2 June 2008, Mourinho was appointed the successor of
Roberto Mancini at
Internazionale on a three-year contract, and brought along with him much of his backroom staff who had served him at both Chelsea and Porto.
[38][39] He chose
Giuseppe Baresi, a former Inter player and ex-head coach of their youth academy, as his assistant.
[40] He spoke solely in Italian in his first press conference as Inter boss, claiming to have learnt it "in three weeks."
[41] Mourinho stated that he only intended to make a few major signings in the summer.
[42] By the end of the transfer window, he had brought three new players to the side: Brazilian winger
Mancini (€13 million),
[43][44] Ghanaian midfielder
Sulley Muntari for reported €14 million,
[45] and Portuguese winger
Ricardo Quaresma for a cash/player exchange fee of €18.6 million plus young Portuguese midfielder
Pelé.
[46][47]
2008–09
In his first season as Inter head coach, Mourinho won the
Supercoppa Italiana, beating
Roma on penalties,
[48] and finished top of Serie A. Inter, however, were eliminated 2–0 on aggregate by
Manchester United in the first knock-out round of the
Champions League, and he also failed to win the
Coppa Italia, being defeated 3–1 on aggregate by
Sampdoria in the semi-finals.
[49] As
UEFA was beginning to push the larger clubs in top leagues to play more homegrown players, Mourinho regularly played 18-year-old Italian forward
Mario Balotelli and promoted academy defender
Davide Santon to the first team permanently, installing an Italian contingent into a team previously composed of mostly foreign players. Both teenagers played a part in the Scudetto-winning season and played enough games to earn their first senior trophy.
Despite his domestic successes in winning the
Scudetto by a ten-point margin, Mourinho's first season in Italy was viewed as disappointing by some Inter fans as they failed to improve on the performances of his predecessor Roberto Mancini in the Champions League. Inter put in a series of lacklustre group stage performances that included a shock 1–0 home loss to
Panathinaikos and an away draw with Cypriot minnows
Anorthosis Famagusta. They qualified, however, for the knockout stages of the Champions League but failed to make it to the quarter-finals after being defeated by Manchester United.
Mourinho also caused immediate ripples in Italian football through his controversial relationships with the Italian press and media, and feuds with major Serie A coaches such as
Carlo Ancelotti, then of
A.C. Milan,
Luciano Spalletti of Roma, and
Claudio Ranieri of
Juventus. At a press conference in March 2009, he insulted the first two rivals by claiming they would end the season with no honours – and accused the Italian sport journalists of "intellectual prostitution" on their behalf.
[50] This rant promptly became very popular in Italy, especially regarding the "zero titles" quote used by Mourinho, and incorrectly pronounced by him as
zeru tituli (in correct Italian it would have been
zero titoli), which was later extensively referred to by football journalists in Italy. It also became the title's catchphrase used by fans to celebrate Inter's 17th
Scudetto later that season.
[51][52] The catchphrase was even used by
Nike to present the celebration shirts for Inter's Serie A title.
[53] After the
Coppa Italia final in May, fans of Roma's cross-town rivals
Lazio, the new Coppa Italia winners, wore shirts with
Io campione, tu zero titoli ("I'm a champion, you have no honours") on it,
[54] quoting Mourinho's "zeru tituli" statement.
On 16 May 2009, Inter mathematically won the Serie A title, after runners-up Milan lost to
Udinese. This loss left the
Nerazzurri seven points above their crosstown rivals with only two games remaining. They would eventually finish ten points clear of Milan.
[55]
2009–10
Mourinho during his tenure as Internazionale manager.
On 28 July 2009, Mourinho was reported to have shown interest in taking over at Manchester United when Sir
Alex Ferguson retired. He was quoted as saying, "I would consider going to Manchester United but United have to consider if they want me to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson. If they do, then of course."
[56]
Adriano left Inter in April 2009, and the exit of the Brazilian striker was followed by the Argentine duo
Julio Cruz and
Hernán Crespo. Legendary Portuguese attacking midfielder and veteran
Luís Figo retired. Figo was on the verge of leaving Inter under Mancini due to a lack of playing time but in his final season, Mourinho used him frequently. Mourinho signed Argentine striker
Diego Milito, who fell just one goal short of winning the top scorer award with
Genoa, as well as
Thiago Motta and
Wesley Sneijder, to bolster the midfield. Perhaps his most notable signing of the summer of his second season was a swap deal of
Zlatan Ibrahimović for
FC Barcelona's Cameroonian striker
Samuel Eto'o and a reported £35 million transfer fee also went to Inter. This transfer was the second most expensive in the history of the transfer market, after
Cristiano Ronaldo moved to
Real Madrid earlier in the summer. Eto'o got off to a promising start with Inter by scoring two goals in the first two matches of the season.
Ricardo Quaresma's signing from Mourinho's old club
FC Porto was viewed as a missing link in the Inter squad, but his play disappointed the club and led him to be loaned off to
Chelsea midway through the season, ironically Mourinho's other former club. Mancini also failed to dominate in the midfield and addressing these shortcomings in the transfer market became a priority for Inter. Inter's lack of a creative playmaker, or
trequartista, had been blamed for the Champions League failure. In their attempt to deal with this issue, Inter signed Dutch midfielder Wesley Sneijder from Real Madrid.
Mourinho once again sparked controversy in the summer with his argument with
Italy national team coach
Marcello Lippi. Lippi predicted that
Juventus would win the
Scudetto in the
2009–10 season, which Mourinho viewed as disrespectful to Inter. The previous year, Lippi predicted Inter would win the title and Mourinho did not respond to his prediction. Lippi responded by saying that Mourinho was equal to
Ciro Ferrara and
Leonardo at Juventus and Milan, respectively, only that he was more experienced. After the row with Lippi, he clashed with Italy captain
Fabio Cannavaro over Davide Santon's place in the Inter squad. Cannavaro had said that Santon might have to leave Inter to get regular playing time to gain selection for Italy in the World Cup. Mourinho responded by saying that Cannavaro was acting like a coach.
Inter struggled in their first two matches of the new season. The team lost the
Supercoppa to Lazio 2–1 and drew 1–1 with newly promoted
Bari at the
San Siro. Mourinho's team improved dramatically after that, however, as he built a formidable midfield with Sneijder at the heart of it and the likes of new signing Thiago Motta and veterans
Javier Zanettiand
Dejan Stanković. Inter went on score more than 30 goals before the end of November, thrashing
derby rivals Milan 4–0, with new signings Diego Milito and Motta both scoring, and hammering Genoa 5–0, the largest margin of victory in the Serie A that season. Mourinho was sent off in the December
Derby d'Italia away fixture after he sarcastically applauded the referee for what he felt was a dubious free-kick given to Juventus and Inter went on to lose 2–1, courtesy of a
Claudio Marchisio winner in the second-half.
[57]
Mourinho with Internazionale.
Later during the season, Mourinho maintained a strongly critical position against refereeing in Italy, which reached its peak during the league game on 22 February 2010 against
Sampdoria, ended in a 0–0 tie, with two Inter players being sent off in the first half. At the end of the first half, José Mourinho made a
handcuffs gesture towards a camera which was considered by the Football Association as violent and critical of the refereeing performance, and caused a three-game ban against the Portuguese coach.
[58] Also, his difficult relationship with young striker Mario Balotelli and the team's loss of form that led Inter to achieve only seven points in six games (and three of such games, including a shock 1–3 defeat at the hands of Sicilian minnows
Catania, happening during Mourinho's ban) were heavily criticised by the media and pundits. Despite this, Mourinho achieved what was hailed as one of his career highlights after Inter managed to progress to the
Champions League quarter-finals by defeating his former team
Chelsea in both legs (2–1 win at
San Siro, then followed by a 1–0 win at
Stamford Bridge).
[59]
On 6 April 2010, José Mourinho became the first manager in history to take three different teams to the semi-finals of the
UEFA Champions League (this record was equalled by
Bayern Munich manager
Louis van Gaal a day later) after Inter managed to overcome
CSKA Moscow 0–1 in Russia in the second leg of their quarter-final tie, which ended 2–0 on aggregate. Wesley Sneijder's goal in the sixth minute proved the difference in a match played in laid-back style. This marked the first time in seven years that Inter managed to make it to the semi-finals of the competition.
[60] On 13 April, Inter continued its good season, having managed to qualify for the
Coppa Italia final, for the first time under Mourinho, by beating
Fiorentina 1–0 away (2–0 on aggregate).
[61]
On 28 April 2010, José Mourinho reached the Champions League final for the second time in his career after Inter beat current holders
Barcelona 3–2 on aggregate, after losing 1–0 at
Nou Camp (which Mourinho called "the most beautiful defeat of my life"). This brought Inter back into a
European Cup final 38 years after their last (a defeat by
AFC Ajax).
[62] Mourinho was involved in a brief scuffle with Barcelona goalkeeper
Víctor Valdés while attempting to join in the Inter celebrations.
[63] Mourinho afterwards stated that "anti-Madridismo" had motivated the Barça fans, suggesting that they were obsessed with reaching the final and winning the tournament in their arch-rival's home ground.
Marcaproclaimed that Mourinho had passed the test to become the next head coach of Real Madrid, as their fans celebrated the elimination of Barcelona.
[64]
On 2 May, after a 2–0 away win at Rome against Lazio, Inter almost secured the Serie A title. On 5 May 2010, the team won the Coppa Italia, defeating Roma
1–0, and on 16 May 2010, Inter beat
Siena 1–0 to secure the domestic
double, accomplishing the feat of winning all trophies available for a manager in the Serie A.
[65][66]
On 22 May 2010, Inter won the
2010 UEFA Champions League Final beating
Bayern Munich 2–0, and in doing so Inter became the first Italian club to complete the
treble and Mourinho personally celebrated the second "treble win" in his managerial career and second Champions League win.
[67]
The day after having won the Champions League, Mourinho claimed that he was "sad, as almost for sure it's my last game with Inter". He then added that "if you don't coach Real Madrid then you will always have a gap in your career".
[68]
After days of discussions between Real Madrid and Internazionale, a record breaking compensation package was successfully agreed on 28 May 2010, and Mourinho was consequently released by Inter.
[69][70]
Real Madrid
On 28 May 2010, it was confirmed that Mourinho would take over from
Manuel Pellegrini at the
Estadio Santiago Bernabéu.
[71] On 31 May 2010, Mourinho was unveiled as the new manager of
Real Madrid after signing a four-year deal at the club, and became the 11th manager in the past seven years at Real Madrid.
[72] Mourinho was appointed sporting manager as well as first-team coach, and he was regarded by some
[weasel words] as a
Galáctico (a term more often used for star players instead of coaches).
[73][74]
2010–11
On 29 November 2010, Mourinho's Madrid were defeated on his first
Clásico encounter against
Barcelona. The match, held in
Camp Nouended 5–0 to the hosts, with Real Madrid director
Florentino Pérez regarding it the worst game in the history of Real Madrid.
[76] Sporting director
Valdano also criticised Mourinho for his 'inability to bring a major correction to the game' and 'not leaving his bench for the (majority) of the match'.
[77] When asked by a media reporter however, Mourinho refused to call the loss a 'humiliation'.
[78]
On 30 November 2010, Mourinho was fined £33,500 for appearing to instruct
Xabi Alonso and
Sergio Ramos to attempt to receive a tactical second yellow card in the 4–0
Champions League win against
Ajax.
[79] He was also banned for two Champions League matches, the second of which is suspended for three years.
[80]
On 22 December 2010, Mourinho won a match by the widest margin in his career, winning 8–0 against
Levante, also of La Liga, in the first leg of their quarter-final of the
Copa del Rey.
[81]
On 7 December 2011, Real Madrid defeated Ajax with a 3–0 scoreline and concluded the Champions League group stage with six victories,
[82] becoming the fifth team in Champions League history to accomplish the feat.
[83] The victory was the team's fifteenth consecutive win to equal a
club record set 50 years earlier, in 1961.
[84]
On 20 April 2011, Mourinho won his first trophy in Spanish football as Real Madrid defeated arch-rivals Barcelona 1–0 in the
Copa del Rey final held at the
Mestalla Stadium in
Valencia, ending Real Madrid's eighteen-year-long Copa del Rey drought.
[85] It was also Real's first trophy since their 2007–08 La Liga title. One week later the two teams met again in the first leg of the semi-finals of the
Champions League, Real Madrid's furthest advance in the tournament since the
2003 semi-finals, as the club was knocked out in the 2004 quarter-finals and then from 2005–2010 the club had suffered six consecutive exits at the round-of-sixteen. At the Bernabéu, Real's
Pepe was dismissed in the 61st minute and Mourinho was sent to the stands for protesting, afterward Barca's
Lionel Messi scored two late goals to take control of the tie. The second leg at Camp Nou finished 1–1 which eliminated Real from the tournament.
[86][87]
2011–12
On 21 April 2012, Real Madrid won 1–2 against FC Barcelona in
El Clásico in Camp Nou, extending their lead in
La Liga to seven points with four matches remaining. This was the first victory for Real Madrid in La Liga against their arch rivals since 2008 and the first overall at Camp Nou since 2007. Also, in this match Real Madrid broke the record for most goals scored in the championship, with 109.
[88][89] Barça manager
Pep Guardiola conceded the title to Real Madrid.
[90]
Mourinho's side advanced to the
semi-finals of the Champions League for the second consecutive year.
[91] The first leg away finished with a 2–1 win to
Bayern Munich. In the second leg at home, Real Madrid took a 2–0 lead from two Cristiano Ronaldo goals but Bayern's
Arjen Robben (a former Real player whom Mourinho previously managed at Chelsea) converted a penalty to level the aggregate score at 3–3, and Madrid was eliminated in the shootout with Ronaldo, Kaká, and Ramos all failing to convert their spot kicks. Bayern manager
Jupp Heynckes said that Mourinho "came to the dressing room to congratulate my players and coaching staff after the game. It was very noble".
[92][93]
On 13 May 2012, Real Madrid defeated
Mallorca 4–1, in their last league match of the season which set
records for most games won in a La Liga season (32), most away wins (16), most points obtained in any of the top European leagues (100), improving the most goals scored record they already had set earlier (121), and finishing the season with the highest goal difference (+89).
[95][96] Real Madrid topped the league 9 points clear of runners-up Barcelona.
2012–13
Mourinho with Milan players prior to a pre-season match with Madrid
On 22 May 2012, Mourinho signed a new four-year contract to remain as Real Madrid manager, till 2016.
[97] After losing 3–2 in Barcelona in the first leg of the
2012 Supercopa de España, Real Madrid won the return leg in Madrid 2–1. Real Madrid won the competition on the
away goals rule after a tie of 4–4 on aggregate. This meant Mourinho had won every domestic title available for a manager in the Spanish top division within two years. He became the only coach who has won the national
Super cups in four different European countries.
[98]This also made Mourinho the first manager in
history to win every domestic title, the league championship, cup, super cup, and league cup (if available), in four European leagues.
Real Madrid reached the semi-finals of the
Champions League for the third consecutive year under Mourinho's management. However, they were defeated 4–1 in the first leg away at
Borussia Dortmund. In the second leg at home, Real managed to score two goals in the last ten minutes, but the team could not get the third goal that would levelled the aggegate score and sent them through on away goals.
[99]
In the post-game press conference after the second leg with Dortmund, Mourinho hinted that the
2012–13 season with Real Madrid would be his last, saying "I am loved by some clubs, especially one. In Spain it is different, some people hate me, many of you in this (press) room."
[100] Mourinho's fraught relationships with Sergio Ramos and club captain
Iker Casillas (a popular player whom Mourinho sidelined in 2013) caused divisions between fans in the "Mourinhistas" and "Madridistas" (the more traditional Real Madrid fans) camps.
[99] His relationship with Cristiano Ronaldo became difficult because, according to Mourinho, the player "maybe thinks that he knows everything and that the coach cannot improve him anymore", so was unwilling to accept constructive criticism.
[101] Mourinho was also criticised
[by whom?] for controversial incidents, including poking
Tito Vilanova (then assistant coach at Barcelona) in the eye during a brawl, continual complaints about refereeing bias, clashes with journalists and Real officials, and frequent hints that
Barçareceived favourable treatment from UEFA.
[100]
Following the
2013 Copa del Rey Final loss to
Atlético de Madrid on 17 May, Mourinho called the 2012–13 season "the worst of my career".
[102] Three days later, Real Madrid president
Florentino Pérez announced Mourinho would leave the club at the end of the season by "mutual agreement", a year after signing a contract extension to 2016.
[103]
Return to Chelsea
On 3 June 2013, Chelsea chief executive
Ron Gourlay announced the appointment of Mourinho as manager for the second time, on a four-year contract.
[104] Mourinho told Chelsea TV: "In my career I've had two great passions – Inter and Chelsea – and Chelsea is more than important for me." "It was very, very hard to play against Chelsea, and I did it only twice which was not so bad." "Now I promise exactly the same things I promised in 2004 with this difference to add: I'm one of you."
[105] On 10 June 2013, Mourinho was officially confirmed as Chelsea manager for the second time at a press conference held at Stamford Bridge.
[106]
2013–14
Mourinho's first competitive game back in charge of Chelsea ended in a 2–0 home victory against
Hull City on 18 August 2013.
[107]
In 29 January 2014, following a 0–0 draw at home to
West Ham United, Mourinho described the Hammers as playing "19th century football" saying "This is not the best league in the world, this is football from the 19th century," "The only [other] thing I could bring was a
Black and Decker to destroy the wall."
[108] On 19 April 2014, Mourinho suffered his first ever home league defeat as Chelsea manager in a 2–1 loss to
Sunderland at
Stamford Bridge.
[109] He consistently played down Chelsea's title chances throughout the season and referred to it as a transitional season,
[110] slowly moulding his squad and most significantly dropping (and eventually selling) Chelsea's player of the year of the two previous seasons,
Juan Mata.
[111] Chelsea went on to finish third in the
2013–14 Premier League, four points behind champions
Manchester City.
2014–15
Reception
Mourinho is widely regarded by several players and coaches to be one of the best managers of his generation and one of the greatest ever managers.
[112][113][114][115] Bayern Munich manager
Pep Guardiola has described Mourinho as "probably the best coach in the world".
[116][117] Chelsea midfielder
Frank Lampard has stated that Mourinho is the best manager he has ever worked for.
[118] He has sometimes been accused for playing defensive, dull football to grind out results.
[119][120][121][122][123]
Mourinho has been criticised for negative tactics by a few coaches and players, including
Johan Cruyff,
[124] and
Morten Olsen.
[125] Cruyff stated, "Jose Mourinho is a negative coach. He only cares about the result and doesn't care much for good football."
[124] After one game, Cruyff stated: "Mourinho is not a football coach. To play at home with seven defenders, you must be very afraid."
[126] Olsen stated, "I don't like his persona or the way he plays football negatively."
[125]
Controversies
Mourinho was lampooned in Spain following the incident where he poked Barcelona manager
Tito Vilanova in the eye.
Following a Champions League tie between Chelsea and
Barcelona in March 2005, Mourinho accused referee
Anders Frisk and Barcelona coach
Frank Rijkaard of breaking
FIFA rules by having a meeting at half–time. Mourinho insisted that this biased the referee and caused him to send off Chelsea striker
Didier Drogba in the second half.
[127] Frisk admitted that Rijkaard had tried to speak to him but insisted that he had sent him away.
[128] The situation intensified when Frisk began to receive death threats from angered fans, causing the referee to retire prematurely.
[129] The
UEFA referee's chief,
Volker Roth, labelled Mourinho an "enemy of football",
[130] although UEFA distanced themselves from the comment.
[131] After an investigation of the incident, Mourinho was given a two-match touchline ban for his behaviour and both Chelsea and the manager were fined by UEFA, though the body confirmed that it did not hold Mourinho personally responsible for Frisk's retirement.
[132][133]
On 2 June 2005, Mourinho was fined £200,000 for his part in the meeting with then
Arsenal full-back
Ashley Cole in January 2005 in breach of the Premier League rules. His fine was later reduced to £75,000 after a hearing in August.
[134] Later that year, he labelled Arsenal manager
Arsène Wenger "a voyeur" after being irked at what he saw as the latter's apparent obsession with Chelsea. Wenger was furious with the remark and considered taking legal action against Mourinho.
[135] However, the animosity died down and the two managers made peace after Mourinho admitted that he regretted making the comment.
[136]
In a
2010–11 UEFA Champions League match at
Ajax in November 2010, late in the match when Real Madrid were leading 4–0, two Real Madrid players received late second yellow cards related to time wasting. The result of this meant they were suspended for the final group match even though Madrid would come first in the group, but would benefit by entering the round of 16 without any accumulated yellow cards. It was suggested that this was a deliberate ploy under Mourinho's instruction via two players in a substitution. As a result, UEFA charged Mourinho along with the four related players with improper conduct.
[137]
On 17 August 2011, in the final of the
2011 Supercopa de España, Mourinho was seen gouging the eye of Barcelona's assistant coach
Tito Vilanova during a brawl at the end of the game. After the game Mourinho did not comment on the incident except to claim that he did not know who "Pito" Vilanova was, with Pito being Spanish slang for penis.
[138]
Personal life
Mourinho met his wife Matilde "Tami" Faria, born in Angola, when they were teenagers in Setúbal, Portugal, and the couple married in 1989.
[139][140] Their first child, daughter Matilde, was born in 1996 and they had their first son, José Mário, Jr. (who plays football for CD Canillas'
Infantil B team),
[141] four years later. Mourinho, whilst dedicated to football, describes his family as the centre of his life and has noted that the "most important thing is my family and being a good father."
[14][140] He was selected as the
New Statesman Man of the Year 2005 and was described as a man devoted to both his family and his work.
[13]
Mourinho has also been a part of social initiatives and charity work, helping with a youth project, bringing Israeli and Palestinian children together through football and donating his "lucky" jacket to
Tsunami Relief, earning £22,000 for the charity.
[142][143]
Widely known for his strong personality, refined dress sense,
[144] and quirky comments at press conferences,
[145] Mourinho has experienced fame outside of football circles, featuring in European advertisement campaigns for
Samsung,
American Express,
Braun,
Jaguar and
adidas, amongst others.
[146] An unofficial biography of Mourinho, titled
O Vencedor – De Setúbal a Stamford Bridge (The Winner – from Setúbal to Stamford Bridge), was a best seller in Portugal. However, Mourinho did not authorise the biography and attempted, unsuccessfully, to prevent the book from being published.
[147]
Mourinho was part of an unusual event in May 2007 when he was arrested for preventing animal welfare officials from putting his dog into
quarantine.
[148] The dog had not been sufficiently inoculated but the situation was resolved after it was returned to Portugal and Mourinho received a police caution.
[149]
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