It’s ironic that a few weeks after railing against the antics of the “Special One” I should be lamenting the departure of Jose Mourinho from Chelsea. It was quite a rude shock when I belatedly stumbled on news of his departure a good day and a half after the deed was done. It’s perhaps appropriate then that it’s taken me this long to put my thoughts down.
If you read my earlier posts you would know for sure that Mourinho isn’t exactly my favorite person. Arrogant, loud, full of himself, sore loser and just simply annoying, are all apt descriptions of the Portuguese coach. But there can be no denying that the man knows a thing or two about coaching.
Sure, he had Roman Abramovich’s millions to play around with, but I think it takes much more than money to achieve success. For one thing, his predecessor, Claudio Ranieri, came up short on all fronts in his one season at the helm of the “Roman Revolution”. Mourinho settled in quickly, claiming the Premiership title at his first attempt and repeating the feat the following year. Besides, Mourinho had already proved his worth in leading modest Porto to Champions League glory in 2004.
Mourinho certainly ruffled feathers in his three year stint in England, not least those of fellow high-flyers Arsene Wenger, Alex Ferguson and Rafa Benitez. And he was great entertainment for the press corps as well, spouting quotable quotes on almost every occasion. To my mind, Mourinho’s one failing was that same brash arrogance that made him such great copy. He started last season with a lean squad of 21 players, proclaiming that was all he needed to win a third championship and finally bring home the Champions League. In the end, an unexpected injury crisis left his team below par. Their saving grace was that goalscorers Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba stayed healthy – as their absence early this season as proved. Sure, they still won two cups, but a deeper squad could have achieved much more. Some would put that down to bad luck, but a manager – especially with that much financial muscle - has to factor in the possibility of injuries at the beginning of the season and Mourinho chose not to bother. Instead, he tried to beat all comers with one hand tied behind his back!
I think Chelsea will be the poorer for his absence, though, especially given that he had already deepened his squad this season with the arrival of the likes of Belletti, Alex, Ben Haim, Sidwell and Pizzaro. That is not saying they won’t be challenging for honours. They certainly have players to match any club in England. Watching Chelsea lose to Man U the other day, I couldn’t imagine Mourinho doing nothing to address Mikel Obi’s sending off with one of his astute substitutions. Avram Grant did just that – nothing – and Chelsea lost a game they could have shut down under Mourinho. For me, the game that best demonstrates Mourinho’s quality and courage as a coach was the spectacular FA Cup clash with Tottenham last season, when with his team trailing 3-1 at half time, he tossed in his full cavalry to salvage a remarkable draw.
Okay, I’d better stop waxing lyrical about Mourinho’s coaching before you think I’ve fallen in love with the man! Point is: For all his other annoying traits, Mourinho is a damned a good coach. It’ll be interesting to see where he goes next – my bet would be one of Italy’s top teams. Wouldn’t it be ironic if he ended up at Juventus – taking over from Ranieri yet again?? More interesting for me would be a move to AC Milan, my favourite Serie A team. Would I be forced to become a Mourinho fan then? Ouch!!
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