On the 10th anniversary of him leading Inter Milan to the UEFA Champions League title, Jose Mourinho has praised the humble and unselfish one, Jose Mourinho.
Ah, Jose. Never change.
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The current Tottenham Hotspur boss spoke to our partners in the UK Sky Sports News about the triumph, as Inter beat Bayern Munich 2-0 at the Santiago Bernabeu on this day in 2010.
“In the final against Bayern Munich, there hasn’t been a single moment when I thought about myself,” Mourinho said. “I never thought ‘if we win, I will get my hands on my second Champions League’. I never thought ‘if we lift the cup, I will win the FIFA Manager of the year”. I never thought about myself. My mind was always fully focused on bringing joy to others. For me it was all about the meaning that the cup had for chairman Massimo Moratti, for club captain and legend Javier Zanetti, for all the players, for the fans. For me it was all about being unselfish. I could not be selfish.
“That is why I felt so special. I felt special because even though it was a very important moment in my career too, I managed to keep being humble and calm. I was paying more attention to others’ reactions than mine. It was a beautiful feeling because these guys had this effect and power on me. I have heard them many times saying I was very important to them, leaving a lifetime mark in their personal experiences. But I want to see it in another way. They were the ones, important to me.”
This is textbook Jose: ‘I’m not going to mention a single word about how great I am, but I am great.’
Winning the treble at Inter Milan during the 2009-10 season was arguably his greatest ever achievement. Coming up against a legendary Barcelona team and beating them in the semifinals with one of the greatest away displays in European history will live long in the memory.
The team he assembled at Inter was tough to break down, dominated Serie A for two seasons and were worthy European champions. You cannot deny that and he is a legend at Inter for delivering that success.
Since winning the UCL with Inter in 2010, Mourinho has won the La Liga title, Premier League, two League Cups, a Copa del Rey and a Europa League trophy, so not a bad 10 years.
In his eight years as a coach before that he won two Portuguese titles, one Portuguese cup, the Champions League and Europa League with FC Porto, two Premier League titles, one FA Cup and two League Cups with Chelsea.
So, there’s been a slight dip in the silverware Mourinho has collected over the last decade. There has not been a dip in his self-confidence, and there never will be.
