Portuguese manager, Jose Mourinho’s time at Real Madrid ended badly but the former Inter Milan coach transformed the club who, until his tenure, had failed to make their mark in Europe and managed to get them back into the Champions League semi-finals.
Although he never managed to be crowned a European champion at Madrid, he has always been keen to remind people of the part he played in their turnaround. During the interview Mourinho exclusively reveals the team Real were afraid to face when he arrived.
“I think that for seven or eight years they hadn’t reached the quarter-finals,” he said to beIN Sports. “They didn’t play in semi-finals or quarter-finals. In my first season we had Lyon and the club was afraid. “I couldn’t understand how a club could be afraid of Lyon, who were a good team, but it was Lyon.
“We fell in the semi-finals on penalties, with Kaka, Sergio Ramos and Cristiano Ronaldo – all excellent takers – failing. Then we had a record of 100 points and lost in the semi-finals on penalties.”
Kylian Mbappe undoubtedly has a bright future ahead of him, but Mourinho is only interested in talking about the player he is today: “When I see him I don’t see what he can be in five or ten years,” he said. “You have to see the player he is now, which is absolutely incredible.
Mourinho also said he thinks Mbappe already outranks Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Paris Saint-Germain team-mate Neymar as the most valuable player in the world. Mbappe joined PSG on loan in summer 2017, with a compulsory purchase price of €180 million set for summer 2018. The eventual fee saw him become the second-most-expensive player of all time, but Mourinho told beIN Sports on Monday (h/t Goal’s Matt Dorman) that the Frenchman is top of the charts: “For a player like Mbappe, when you speak about the future, you don’t need to say what he’s going to be like in five years’ time, in 10 years’ time. Just focus on now. He’s absolutely incredible.
“I think going by his age and [and considering] the age of Cristiano, of Messi, [both] over 30, Neymar is 27… when you go to the market level and age is also a factor, I think he’s the most valuable player in the world. “In a hypothetical transfer, he’s the most expensive player in football now. “In terms of his qualities, [he is] unbelievable. One word is enough. It means everything.”
Currently without a club, the former Chelsea and Manchester United boss is planning to be back in work for the 2019/20 season: “I have the idea in mind to start in June at a club,” he said. “I know exactly what I don’t want next season, which is why I rejected three or four offers.
“I know what I want, not in terms of a specific club, but the nature of the work and the size of the club, and that’s what I’m waiting for.”
