Jose Mourinho has landed the Spurs job, after 11 months out of work, but the former Chelsea boss claimed just four years ago his love for the Blues meant he couldn't work for their London rivals.
The 56-year-old was announced as the new Spurs boss on Wednesday morning, less than 12 hours after Mauricio Pochettino was sacked, but it's certainly not always been his dream to manage in north London.
In 2015 the Portuguese manager was asked about how Daniel Levy had tried to recruit him in 2007 when he'd first lost the Chelsea job.
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Asked about the approach Mourinho said, "Yes. I couldn't go. I couldn't train in England for two years," talking about a clause in his contract that stopped him managing in the Premier League after his sacking.
The 'Special One' then added, "I would not take the job because I love Chelsea supporters too much."
Spurs' new manager and their fans are sure to have an interesting relationship, especially at the beginning of their tenure, following a good relationship between 'Poch' and the faithful support.
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In 2018, after the North London club beat Mourinho's Manchester United, the former Real Madrid boss was asked about chants by the fans, who sang 'you're not special anymore,' with Mourinho saying, "Yeah, but they didn't have that song when we beat them at Wembley [in the FA Cup semi-final] a couple of months ago, that final they had a big dream to go, a title they had a big dream to win, because they don't win many.
"In that night at Wembley the United fans were singing the special one and of course they were not singing that."
And if fans of the Champions League runners-up were hoping for the attacking football they've been used to, and they really won't be expecting it under the new boss, then it's worth remembering Mourinho wasn't impressed by Spurs 4-5 loss to Arsenal in 2004, saying, "That was not a football score, it was a hockey score...in training I often play matches of three against three and when the score reaches 5-4 I send the players back to the dressing room, because they are not defending properly."
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It will certainly be interesting to see if Mourinho can get fans of his new club on board. Fans of his former clubs won't have to wait long for a reunion either as Spurs play United on December 4th and Chelsea on December 22nd.
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Spurs, Frank Lampard, Football News, Jose Mourinho, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United, Mauricio Pochettino, Premier League, West Ham, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
