09/04/2014

Attention-seeking Mourinho grabs the spotlight - again

Love him or loathe him, no-one can accuse Jose Mourinho of avoiding the spotlight.
After Chelsea dramatically booked their place in the semi-finals of the Champions League by overcoming Paris Saint-Germain, Mourinho made a mad dash down the touchline as Demba Ba's decisive strike sparked wild celebrations.

He claimed he wanted to make an urgent tactical point to his players but the scenes were reminiscent of the moment at Old Trafford a decade ago when he claimed his place in the consciousness of football fans in England. And that was far from the only 'special' limelight-stealing moment in a dramatic managerial career:

The original touchline run

In 2004, Porto looked to be heading out of the Champions League on the away goals rule, trailing 1-0 at Old Trafford and drawing 2-2 on aggregate. However, Costinha's injury-time equaliser silenced the Manchester United fans.
But there was nothing quiet about Mourinho's reaction to the dramatic goal, as he jumped out of his seat in the dugout and sprinted down the touchline to join the team in front of the Porto supporters.

Celebrations all round

What would you do if you won the Champions League? Kiss the trophy? Jump with joy with your team-mates?
Mourinho just walked off did when he masterminded an unlikely triumph for Porto over Monaco in 2004. He removed his medal immediately after the presentation and disappeared down the tunnel, the last time the Chelsea-bound manager would be seen as Porto's main man.


The 'Special One' arrives

A reported agreement to manage Chelsea long before Porto's European victory may have been the reason for Mourinho's low-key celebration. In the summer of 2004, Mourinho was responsible for one of the most memorable unveilings of a new manager.
"Please don't call me arrogant, but I'm the European champion and I think I'm a special one," he said as he introduced himself as the new Chelsea boss.
Though he had won six trophies in over two-and-a-half years at Porto, Mourinho was more like the 'unknown one', but very quickly made an impression that was built to last.

A dirty trick

Mourinho allegedly worked his way around a UEFA ban - barring any contact with his players in both legs of Chelsea's Champions League quarter-final with Bayern Munich in 2005 - by hiding in a laundry basket that was wheeled into the Stamford Bridge dressing room during the first leg.

Chelsea fitness coach Rui Faria was accused of using an earpiece under his hat to communicate with Mourinho during the game before the manager was reportedly delivered to the Stamford Bridge leisure centre, where it was claimed he had spent the entire evening.

The right to remain silent

In delivering the first Chelsea trophy of his reign, the League Cup, Mourinho again stole the spotlight as he made a finger-to-lips gesture telling the Liverpool fans to hush after a Steven Gerrard own goal made the scores level at the Millennium Stadium in 2005.

The manager was soon escorted from the touchline and made to watch the rest of the final from the dressing room, but he made his point loud and clear.

Down on your knees

Chelsea put themselves on the verge of reaching the last 16 of the Champions League in 2006 with a Didier Drogba equaliser against Barcelona at the Nou Camp.

Everyone was used to the antics of Mourinho by now but, after much was made of his sartorial elegance, it came as a little surprise to see him ruin a smart suit as he celebrated Drogba's goal with a knee slide. A hefty bill from the dry cleaners would soon be coming his way.

Medals, they're all the same to him

After Chelsea had secured their second consecutive Premier League in 2006, Mourinho chucked his winners' medal into the crowd to make one lucky supporter's day even better. And moments later, a second fan would soon be laughing as they landed the replacement medal which Mourinho he also threw into the stands.
The medals were sold for £21,600 and £16,800 at auction respectively. Mourinho justified the decision by saying he had "one from the last season", claiming it was "the same medal". Those supporters enjoying windfalls certainly had no truck with that.

'The sweetest 1-0 defeat of my life'

Branded by many of the Barcelona supporters as the 'translator', Mourinho guided Inter Milan to the Champions League final of 2010 following an impressive defensive display at the Nou Camp.

Inter had won the first leg 3-1 but, despite battling with 10 men for over an hour in the second leg, they progressed after limiting the damage in a 1-0 defeat and Mourinho celebrated settling an old score over Barcelona by running onto the pitch with one finger pointed to the air.

Did Barca react - did they ever? Goalkeeper Victor Valdes attempted to manhandle the Portuguese off the pitch and the groundstaff shamefully turned on the water sprinklers. Touche.

Mourinho confronts Real fans

Like most in charge at Real Madrid, Mourinho endured abuse from bitter rivals Barcelona supporters during his tenure at the Bernabeu between 2010-13. What made the Portuguese special, though, was that he incurred the wrath of the Real Madrid fans, too.

The relationship between Mourinho, the supporters and the club's hierarchy gradually turned sour, with an exit from his managerial post becoming a matter of "when" rather than "if" by the end and the combative one took little sitting down.

Seemingly fed up of the heckling from the boo-boys who had become frustrated with the inability to keep up with Barcelona in La Liga, Mourinho promised he would stand on the Bernabeu pitch 40 minutes before kick-off in December 2012. And he delivered on his words, as some fans whistled at him with some cheering and chanting his name.      (espn.co.uk)

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