Jose Mourinho reveals which club he had the “best experience” managing
Jose Mourinho has named his spell at Real Madrid as the “best experience” of his managerial career so far.
The Portuguese is one of the most successful managers of the modern generation, winning a host of major honours in England, Spain, Italy and Portugal.
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- FC Porto (2002-04): Primeira Liga x2, Taca de Portugal, Portuguese Super Cup, Champions League, Uefa Cup.
- Chelsea (two spells): Premier League x3, FA Cup, League Cup x3, Community Shield.
- Inter Milan (2008-10): Serie A x2, Coppa Italia, Supercoppa Italiana, Champions League.
- Real Madrid (2010-13): La Liga, Copa del Rey, Spanish Super Cup.
- Man Utd (2016-18): League Cup, Community Shield, Europa League.
But despite winning an unlikely Champions League title during his time with Porto, as well as adding another European crown with Inter Milan, it is his three-year stay with Real Madrid between 2010 and 2013 which he holds in the highest regard.
“Real Madrid was my best experience because of what I learned as a coach, as a man, because of the lessons I took in my career and in my life,” he told Portuguese TV channel 11, as reported by Marca.
“It is the best memory of my career, it was fantastic.”
Mourinho secured the 2011/12 La Liga title with a league-record 100-point haul – a feat Barcelona matched the following season – while he also guided Los Blancos to victory over their arch-rivals in the Copa del Rey final a year earlier.
And it is these battles with the Blaugrana and the need for Real Madrid to compete with them which sticks most in the memory for the 56-year-old.
“What they asked me at Real Madrid went with my nature,” Mourinho said.
“They told me that we had the best team in the world on the other side, that they were crushing us and we had to reverse the situation.
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“We had to prevent Barça from crushing us and that’s why the Mestalla cup final is the most important.
“From there, nothing was the same. We won the league, the Super Cup, but nothing was like the [Copa del Rey] final.”
Despite these monumental successes, Mourinho still harbours regret at not reaching a Champions League final during his time at the Bernabeu.
He added: “Unfortunately, I didn’t manage to win any of the three Champions League semi-finals [I took Madrid to].”
Mourinho has been without a job since being sacked by Manchester United in December 2018.
