Jose Mourinho: Best Quotes
Real Madrid’s new manager, Jose Mourinho, is more than just a tactical genius and one of the most successful coaches in this century; he is an expert at handling the media. During his time at his previous clubs Porto, Chelsea and Inter Milan, the Portuguese manager has created a unique rapport with the media, which no other football coach has managed to do.
Mourinho is a true entertainer, when in front of the press over the years, he has given the world of football some of the most memorable quotes, ranging from topics as mundane as the weather to conspiracies in the football world.
Most of Mourinho’s memorable quotes came during his time at the English Champions Chelsea, where the press fell in love with the charismatic manager.
After Chelsea faced a string of injuries during the 2007-2008 season just as the title race was starting to get tight, with Manchester United looking like they would run away with the title, Mourinho had the following to say:
“It is like having a blanket that is too small for the bed. You pull the blanket up to keep your chest warm and your feet stick out. I cannot buy a bigger blanket because the supermarket is closed. But I am content because the blanket is cashmere. It is no ordinary blanket.”
Chelsea are not a club known for their youth policy, but when quizzed about his opinions on bringing in some players to the squad, Mourinho had a rather philosophical answer.
“Young players are a little bit like melons. Only when you open and taste the melon are you 100 per cent sure that the melon is good.
Sometimes you have beautiful melons but they don’t taste very good and some other melons are a bit ugly and when you open them, the taste is fantastic… One thing is youth football, one thing is professional football. The bridge is a difficult one to cross and they have to play with us and train with us for us to taste the melon. For example, Scott Sinclair, the way he played against Arsenal and Man United, we know the melon we have.”
Although Jose Mourinho is known for having a very good relationship with his players, when they exceed their limits, he knows how to put them in place, as Ricardo Carvalho found out after complaining in the press about not being selected to start Chelsea games.
“Ricardo Carvalho seems to have problems understanding things; maybe he should have an IQ test, or go to a mental hospital or something”
Chelsea at one time had three exceptional wingers in their team; Joe Cole, Arjen Robben and Damien Duff. When asked about his decision to rotate them continuously rather than fielding a stable line-up, Mourinho explained his reasoning with the following analogy.
“Why drive Aston Martin all the time, when I have Ferrari and Porsche as well? That would just be stupid”
Pressure is part of any football manager’s routine but unlike most, Mourinho claimed he enjoyed it and didn’t want to work an environment where that did not exist. Mourinho left his previous job at Porto after winning the Champions League with the Portuguese club and everything else too.
“If I wanted to have an easy job… I would have stayed at Porto – beautiful blue chair, the Uefa Champions League trophy, God, and after God, me.”
The last quote has become the signature of the Portuguese manager, who is referred to as ‘The Special One’ by the press no matter where he goes and it all started with his first press conference after he signed a contract with Chelsea. With all of England watching on, Mourinho announced to the Premier League that he had arrived:
“I’m not a defender of old or new football managers. I believe in good ones and bad ones, those that achieve success and those that don’t. Please don’t call me arrogant, but I’m European champion and I think I’m a special one.”
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