5 superstars sold by Jose Mourinho
For more than two decades now, Jose Mourinho has been coaching at the top level in club football. His distinctive conservational style has made its way into the history books of the sport. With 25 trophies and 1,000 games under his belt, Jose Mourinho has undoubtedly established his position as one of the most influential managers ever.
Biggest transfers under Jose Mourinho
With a profile as illustrious as his, Jose Mourinho has had the liberty to get his hands on any player he fancies. From Paul Pogba to Luka Modric, a hoard of star players have moved clubs to play under the enigmatic manager. However, his well-known love for Chelsea arguably made him initiate some of the best transfers of his career.
It is good to note, Pep's actual coaching career started in 2008 with Barca senior team yet, he is the 2nd highest spending manager since 2000. This is a true definition of over reliance on individual brilliance. This guy would have relegated ManUtd under Ole's conditions in 2019 https://t.co/maGpk9D1W8
While Cesc Fabregas and Nemanja Matic were brilliant in their brief spells with the Blues, the cream of the 58-year-old's signings came during his first stint at Stamford Bridge. One of his favorite players was Portuguese center-half Ricardo Carvalho, whom Jose Mourinho signed a whopping three times. He also orchestrated the signings of Chelsea legends Didier Drogba and Petr Cech in his first year in London.
Considering the talents that Jose Mourinho has brought in, he could be forgiven for letting some gems slip through his hands. In hindsight, the former Real Madrid coach has sanctioned some of the most bizarre deals ever. On that note, let's take a look at five superstars that were sold, with Jose Mourinho at the club's helm:
#5 Juan Mata (Chelsea to Manchester United)
Juan Mata was a budding 23-year-old at Valencia when Chelsea snapped him up in the summer of 2011. Although a highly-rated youngster, he still had a lot to prove. Mata immediately laid every doubt to rest with a scintillating debut season in London. The Spaniard replicated his last campaign with the Bats by producing an astonishing 20 assists and 12 goals in the 2011-12 season.
The creative midfielder continued to rack up assists after assists, providing for the team on a consistent basis. Mata notched a career-best 54 goal contributions in his second season with Chelsea, of which a whopping 35 were assists. Everything seemed to be going according to plan, until Jose Mourinho was appointed Chelsea boss in 2013.
Prime Mata at Chelsea was something else man. twitter.com/BlueSonic_01/s…
Despite being his side's chief creator and a superstar for two seasons, Mata was inexplicably phased out of a stacked Chelsea team by Jose Mourinho. The Portuguese tactician preferred to play the Brazilian Oscar in Mata's position, freezing him out of the team. Subsequently, Mata was sold to Premier League rivals Manchester United in 2014 for €44m.
#4 Leonardo Bonucci (Inter to Genoa)
Neglecting a bizarre €42m switch to AC Milan for the 2017-18 season, Leonardo Bonucci has been a loyal servant to Juventus for 10 years. Ever since he made a permanent switch to Turin in 2010 from Bari, Bonucci has been an ever-present in the Juve backline.
His unexpected switch to the Rossoneri was also significant for another reason. This transfer meant that Bonucci had entered a special club, consisting of players to have played for 'the big three' in Italy. The sturdy defender actually graduated from the distinguished academy of Inter in 2006.
If Leonardo Bonucci plays vs AC Milan on Sunday, he will become the 10th most capped player for Juventus in club history with 447 appearances. https://t.co/jeo4wUxmhv
Having played just four times for the senior squad, Bonucci was ousted from the club under the orders of Jose Mourinho. Although the erratic tactician has a knack for spotting defensive talents, Mourinho's decision to let go of Bonucci has to go down as one of his worst errors in judgment.
Also read: 5 superstars sold by Pep Guardiola