“Forget about it”, “Take your brother’s number” - When Jose Mourinho refused to give Chelsea signing iconic shirt number at Stamford Bridge
Former Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho once told club icon Florent Malouda to forget about wearing the No. 7 when he arrived in 2007.
Malouda - who used to wear the No. 7 at his previous club Marseille - enquired about the availability of the same at Stamford Bridge. However, Mourinho responded with a curt no, as Andriy Shevchenko was wearing it.
The former Guingamp player recalled in a 2022 interview with Ladbrokes (via Sport Bible) about his first interaction with the legendary Chelsea boss:
"My first conversation with Jose Mourinho was great. I was so relieved to have got the green light to travel to London to finalise my contract.
"We talked for a while about which number I was going to wear. In France, I wore the No. 7 shirt, so I asked Jose about the availability of that. He said 'No, Sheva (Andriy Shevchenko) is No. 7. Forget about it."
About the story of his No. 15 shirt, Malouda added that he was told to wear Didier Drogba's number:
"(I asked Mourinho) Which numbers are available, then?"
"(He told me) 'Your brother Didier wore number 15 for a couple of seasons when he arrived before he changed to number 11, so why don't you wear that? Take your brother's number'."
Malouda would go on to make 228 appearances for the Blues till 2013, contributing 45 goals and winning the Premier League, FA Cup and UEFA Champions League.
How Jose Mourinho fared at Chelsea?
Jose Mourinho managed the Blues in 320 games across two stints.
During his first stint between 2004-2007, he won 114 games, losing 22. and clinched consecutive Premier League titles.
His second stint between 2013 and 2015 was shorter, spanning 136 games, winning 80 and losing 27, winning one Premier League title.
Following a disastrous start to the season - losing 12 times across competitions - Mourinho was let go by Chelsea for a second time in eight years.
Mourinho would go on to manage Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and AS Roma before being sacked by the latter last month.