JOSE MOURINHO’S tears over the Manchester United job first emerged shortly after David Moyes was appointed.
In Spanish journalist Diego Torres’ 2013 biography of Mourinho that charted his fraught three years at Real Madrid, chapter 1 is entitled “Crying”.
Mourinho spent two-and-a-half years at United Credit: PA:Press Association
David Moyes didn’t last long after taking over from Fergie Credit: Getty Images
Staff at Jorge Mendes’s Gestifute agency “had heard him sobbing loudly and down the line” on the date Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement was announced, with it already established that David Moyes would replace him.
According to Torres, Mourinho had asked Mendes to “get in touch with United urgently”.
Some tidbits even made their way into the much-missed but defunct fanzine Red Issue before Torres’s book hit shelves.
If are nothing new, the revelation that he signed a contract with United before reneging is.
The water works are presented in a different context. Mourinho insists his “love” for caused him to reject United.
The timelines stack up. Moyes was summoned to Ferguson’s home in Wilmslow on May 1. Days later, Sun Sport revealed that Mourinho had agreed to rejoin Chelsea.
Ferguson can be so economical with the truth he once imagined a fight between Juan Sebastian Veron and Gabriel Heinze at Portsmouth. Veron left United in 2003. Heinze signed in 2004.
When Moyes was announced on May 10 2013, the first bullet point on the club website read, “Manchester United Board unanimously approves the recommendation of Sir Alex Ferguson”.
It also featured a rare quote from United co-owner Avram Glazer: “The search for a new manager has been very short. Alex was very clear with his recommendation and we are delighted that David has agreed to accept the job.”
Ferguson added: “When we discussed the candidates that we felt had the right attributes we unanimously agreed on David Moyes.”
The fallow period post-Ferguson has not reflected well on United’s greatest manager. In his 2013 autobiography, there was no mention of his approach to Mourinho.
In the updated version a year later, he attempted to suggest there was a “methodical procedure” to choose Moyes, as if the input of Avram, Joel and Bryan Glazer and Ed Woodward was required.
Ferguson released another book in September 2015 called Leading. Moyes was sacked in April 2014 and Ferguson’s latest tome clarified the “Chosen One” was actually the sixth-choice one
“I asked Pep to phone me before he accepted an offer from another club but he didn’t and wound up joining Bayern Munich in July 2013,” Ferguson wrote.
“When we started the process of looking for my replacement, we established that several very desirable candidates were unavailable.
“It became apparent that Jose Mourinho had given his word to Roman Abramovich that he would return to Chelsea and that Carlo Ancelotti would succeed him at Real Madrid.
Mourinho and Ferguson at the memorial service on the 60th anniversary of the Munich Air Disaster Credit: Getty – Contributor
Ferguson and Mourinho watching Scotland at Euro 2024 Credit: Instagram / josemourinho
“We also knew that Jurgen Klopp was happy at Borussia Dortmund and would be signing a new contract.
“Meantime, had undertaken to lead the Dutch attempt to win the 2014 World Cup.”
The mention of Van Gaal, the United manager at the time the book was released, was suspicious. Van Gaal was absolutely never in the running to replace Ferguson in the 2010s, so why mention him?
That Mourinho “had given his word to Roman Abramovich that he would return to Chelsea” tallies with the latest version of events.
In the Netflix documentary, Ferguson says: “One night, he phoned me and he was crying and he says: ‘Alex, I can’t take it. I’ve given my word to Chelsea and I’m not going to break my word.’”
To coincide with the 2015 book, Ferguson also appeared in the BBC documentary Sir Alex Ferguson: Secrets of Success. Mourinho was a contributor.
“He told me a huge secret,” Mourinho said of Ferguson’s retirement. “Not many people knew, like one month or two months before the decision to stop.
“I know that he trusts me because if he doesn’t he doesn’t tell me, but I was scared. I was scared.
“So when finally he informed the media about his decision it was a sense of relief.
“Every manager in the world looks at Manchester United as a huge club but I wanted to come to Chelsea and we didn’t bring that to the table.
“Because we were so open and he knew so much about myself that he knew for almost a season I wanted to leave Real Madrid and go to Chelsea.”
Given the documentary was aired two years after Ferguson had headed upstairs, perhaps the dust had not settled for him and Mourinho to disclose the contract signing. Hodder & Stoughton and Hachette Books missed out with Ferguson’s two tomes.
Ferguson said after his final match in charge at Old Trafford that he had not told his brother, Martin, until the evening of May 8 when the news leaked.
When United confirmed the appointment of Moyes, they attached a quote from Sir Bobby Charlton: “I have always said that we wanted the next manager to be a genuine Manchester United man.
“In David Moyes, we have someone who understands the things that make this such a special club. We have secured a man who is committed to the long-term and will build teams for the future as well as now.
“Stability breeds success. David has tremendous strength of character and recognises the importance of bringing young players through and developing them alongside world class talent.”
Mourinho got the better of Ferguson during his first years in England Credit: Bradley Ormesher – The Times
Charlton was a big backer of Ferguson’s Credit: Getty
Charlton’s quotes were widely considered to be barbs aimed at Mourinho.
Only five months earlier, Charlton, a close confidant of Ferguson’s during his 26-and-a-half year epoch, said in an interview: “Mourinho is a really good coach but that’s as far as I would go really.
“He (Ferguson) doesn’t like him too much, though.”
However it all played out, United missed out. With Mourinho, they would have conceivably defended their title in 2013-14.
Mourinho would have commanded the respect of the dressing room. Moyes never lost the dressing room as he never won it over.
United had targeted Cesc Fabregas and Gareth Bale that summer. Bale had long had his heart set on a move to Real Madrid but Fabregas would have been more gettable. He ended up joining Mourinho’s Chelsea in 2014.
The Premier League landscape was ripe to be ridden roughshod over. Arsenal were also-rans under Arsene Wenger, Brendan Rodgers had failed to take Liverpool into Europe, Andre Villas-Boas soon spiralled at Tottenham and Chelsea would have been without their greatest manager.
Only Manchester City under new manager Manuel Pellegrini would have been credible competitors. City regained the title in 2014 and won six more under Guardiola, Ferguson’s first choice.
United, meanwhile, are still stuck on 20 titles and their drought is ticking towards the 14-year mark.
That’s enough for some supporters to shed tears.
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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