Mohamed Salah was reduced to tears after former Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho launched a dressing room tirade at him, according to former teammate Samuel Eto'o.
The Egyptian forward has established himself as one of Europe's best forwards in recent years, but his first spell in England was difficult, to say the least.
After signing for Chelsea from Basel, Salah would score just two goals in 19 appearances under Jose Mourinho before joining Serie A outfit Roma on a permanent deal.
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Salah, who was also loaned out to Fiorentina and Roma during that frustrating two-year spell at Stamford Bridge, didn't see eye-to-eye with the self-proclaimed 'Special One'.
In fact, the pair had a personality clash, according to according to former Chelsea coach Eddie Newton.
Salah's spell at Chelsea was a turbulent one, and nothing sums that up more than a recent tale told by former Blues teammate Samuel Eto'o, who recalls one particular half-time team talk.
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"He (Salah) was unlucky because Jose Mourinho, the manager at the time, didn't take any prisoners," Eto'o said on the Obi One Podcast.
"It doesn't matter who you are, I remember a game away he had a go at Mo Salah at half-time and he was in tears, he was crying.
"We thought he was going to put him back on the pitch but he destroyed him and brought him off but that was his mentality back then.
"I don't think he would do that now, he has become more mature, he knows how to deal with younger players, that's how he got the best out of us then and that's why we were successful."
Eto'o fails to mention specifics but earlier this year, Salah's former Chelsea teammate John Obi Mikel claimed Mourinho "made him cry" during a goalless draw with Norwich in May 2014.
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Speaking to Dubai Eye 103.8, Mikel said: "I think (Salah) was having a bad game and then obviously Mourinho came in and ripped into him, massively ripped into him."
Mikel was then asked if he expected Salah to go on and become one of the world's best players. "No. He was in tears, and what happened is [Mourinho] didn't let him back onto the pitch in the second half. He took him off.
"It would have been easy to just take him off and say 'you're not playing well, off you go, sit down, you're not going back onto the pitch.' But he ripped into him and took him off."
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Featured Image Credit: Getty ImagesTopics: Chelsea, Mohamed Salah, Premier League, Jose Mourinho