It is not usual to see Jose Mourinho giving interviews to the press. In fact, the ‘face to face’ that took place with a journalist from Corriere dello Sport is his first since joining Roma.
In it, he discussed numerous topics: his arrival at Roma, his new life, his similarities with Carlo Ancelotti, and his relationship with Real Madrid.
“People may have a different perception, but I’ve always had an excellent relationship with the clubs I’ve worked for,” said the Portuguese coach.
Furthermore, in terms of Real Madrid, he says that the Merengues fans still show their affection for him all over the world: “I met a Mexican Madrid fan in Portugal and he greeted me with immense joy. I have always been a Madridista and always will be.”
His parallel with Ancelotti
When asked about the reason for his move to Roma, he gives Carlo Ancelotti as an example: “It’s not often that successful coaches take on a lesser project, except for Carlo with Everton. People think we are finished and then he went to Madrid and won everything again.”
Mourinho considers the Italian to be a coach of his generation. A fifth that he describes as unrepeatable: “When Carlo’s generation and mine come to an end, I doubt that we will find careers that are as long and as successful. Today the good coach arrives with more speed and with the same speed he is replaced by other passing phenomena”.
That’s why the Portuguese coach sees himself reflected in Ancelotti, because of all the similarities they share.
“He won the first International Cup in 2003 and the last in 2023, I won the first in 2004 and the last in 2022. He is a great coach. As an ‘Ancelottiano’ and a Madridista, I hope he stays at Real for a long time.”
A new Mourinho and a new life
The Roma coach also wanted to talk about his life in the Italian city and club: “At this stage of my career I needed stability, I felt that something in me had changed. I wanted to go and win somewhere else with more peace of mind and not so much restlessness.”
A different view of life can also be seen in the ‘new Mourinho’: “What worries me most now is my happiness. You have to laugh, joke, think positive and cultivate a sense of humour.”
What hasn’t changed for Mourinho is his constant quarrels with the refereeing and institutional community, particularly in Italy: “Here I feel persecuted. With Chiffi I felt attacked, they violated my freedom. I said the same about him as Modric said about Orsato, but the consequences have not been the same. I was condemned.”
But it was not the only clash Mourinho had last season with the referees. The Portuguese ‘confronted’ Anthony Taylor after the Budapest final controversy: “When I went down to the car park Taylor wasn’t there. The ‘disgraceful piece of shit’ was an air quote. I spoke to Howard Webb and he recognised it was a penalty. If Taylor had done that, not only would he have ended up there, he would have had our respect and our admiration.”
After that final it was time to look to the future, although Jose felt he could not leave after that: “I felt I had to be the father of the family, so I told the group ‘I’m staying with you next year too’. I turned down offers from Al-Hilal and Al-Ahli. Tomorrow you never know. I’m at my best now. Or so they say.”
