“If she takes care of her husband’s diet, she will have less time to speak about me” – When Jose Mourinho shut up Rafa Benitez’s wife
Jose Mourinho once emphatically shut down Rafael Bentiez's wife Maria de Montserrat after she had made a claim about the Portuguese tactician.
Montserrat said that Benitez, who took charge of Chelsea, Real Madrid and Inter Milan after Mourinho, had to clean up the mess done by the self proclaimed 'special one'. She said:
"Real Madrid are the third of Jose Mourinho's old teams that Rafa has coached. We tidy up his messes."
Mourinho hit back at her with his trademark flamboyant style:
“The lady is a bit confused with all respect. I’m not laughing, because her husband went to Chelsea to replace Roberto Di Matteo, and he went to Real Madrid and replaced Carlo Ancelotti."
He added:
"The only club where her husband replaced me was Inter Milan, where in 6 months, he destroyed the best team in Europe at the time."
Mourinho also said:
"And for her also to think about me and speak about me, I think she needs to occupy her time, and if she takes care of her husband’s diet, she will have less time to speak about me.”
Apart from his undeniable tactical brilliance as a manager, Mourinho has always been known for his straight-forward statements. The words aimed at Benitez's wife were yet another instance when the two time UEFA Champions League winner did so.
When Jose Mourinho spoke about working with Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo and Jose Mourinho started working together in 2010 when the Portuguese coach took charge of Real Madrid after the 2010 FIFA World Cup, replacing Manuel Pellegrini.
They worked together for three seasons before Mourinho left at the end of the 2012-13 campaign. Speaking about working with Ronaldo, Mourinho said (via Bleacher Report):
"Coaching (Ronaldo) was the highlight of my career. He's the most professional player I've ever met."
Ronaldo flourished under Mourinho, bagging 168 goals and 49 assists in 164 games across competitions. Mourinho was also the manager that played Ronaldo in an out-and-out striker position for the first time.
Despite having the likes of Karim Benzema, Emmanuel Adebayor and Gonzalo Higuain, Mourinho played Ronaldo as the No. 9 against Barcelona in the 2010-11 Copa del Rey final. Ronaldo repaid his compatriot's trust by scoring a spectacular headed winner in extra time of the nailbiting final.