H is for handcuffs:Mourinho received a three-game touchline ban and a €4,000 fine following a handcuffs gesture during Inters game against Genoa in February, 2010. The Portuguese protested as Walter Samuel and Ivan Cordoba were sent off, and made the gesture (in front of the television cameras, for maximum effect) as Samuel Etoo was booked, alluding to victimisation from the officials. I is for Iker:Not long into his reign as Madrid coach, Mourinho claimed captain Iker Casillas was the best goalkeeper in the world. But relations with the Spain shot-stopper proved prickly from the outset and the Portuguese benched his skipper in December 2012. Later, when Iker was injured, he signed Diego Lopez and kept the new man in the side for the remainder of the campaign, not even calling Casillas up for the last match of the season. BENCHED - CAPTAIN CASILLAS J is for Jesualdo Ferreira:Mourinho met veteran coach Jesualdo Ferreira in the 1980s when he was a student at the Lisbon Superior Institute for Physical Education and Ferreira was a teacher.Moulater refused to accept Ferreira as his assistant in his first coaching role at Benfica and mocked the older man in a column with Portuguese paperRecordas he wrote: This could be the story of a donkey who worked for 30 years but never became a horse. Ferreira, however, went on to win three titles in a row with Porto. K is for Klopp:Ahead of Madrids Champions League semi-final tie against Borussia Dortmund in April of last year, Mourinho hit out at BVB boss Jurgen Klopp. Klopp talks to much, he said. Since the draw, he has spoken every day. L is for laundry baskets:Mourinho clambered into a laundry basket in a Champions League quarter-final tie against Bayern Munich in order to beat a ban and deliver his pre-match and half-time team talks. The coach was wheeled in and out of the dressing room without Uefas knowledge despite being barred from contact with his players in both legs. Chelsea later denied the claims. M is for Muntari:Mourinho caused controversy in the Islamic world by questioning Sulley Muntaris decision to fast during Ramadan. After substituting the Ghanaian during Inters draw with Bari in 2009, the Portuguese said: Muntari had some problems related to Ramadan, perhaps with this heat its not good for him to be doing this [fasting]. Ramadan has not arrived at the ideal moment for a player to play a football match. The comments drew strong criticism from prominent Islamic figures in Italy. N is for nationality:Mourinho has blamed what he considered to be poor treatment in Madrid on a very Iberian issue. It is difficult to be a Portuguese in Spain, he claimed in 2013. The 50-year-old also told the media in 2012 that he would sign no more Portuguese players for Madrid after seeing Fabio Coentrao suffer in the Spanish capital. The Portuguese have a tough life at Real Madrid, he explained. I wouldnt bring any more Portuguese players here - they have to have a special mentality to resist a situation which is not easy for them. WHO IS LO MONACO? O is for ONeill:Mourinho attacked former Celtic coach Martin ONeill before the Scottish side met Barcelona in the Uefa Cup in 2004. Recalling the 2003 Uefa Cup final between his Porto side and ONeills Celtic, Mourinho said: We kept the ball and they just ran all over the pitch trying to get to us with their horrible and aggressive style. P is for Pepe:When Pepe defended benched club captain Casillas after a Liga clash against Valladolid in April of last year, Mourinho turned on his once trusted defender. Pepe has a problem - and his name is Raphael Varane, the coach claimed, alluding to the 20-year-old defender who had displaced the Portugal centre-back in the team.
Posted on: Sat, 15 Feb 2014 10:53:09 +0000
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