Mourinho became known to world football fans for his successes with Porto and an array of talented players in the first years of the 21st century. He then led Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid, Man. Utd and now Tottenham.
The Portuguese strategist was the teacher of many outstanding players such as Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba at Chelsea, Cristiano Ronaldo at Real Madrid, Samuel Eto’o at Inter Milan ... so it was a little surprising when he picked out 11 mirrors. The most elite face, because a few positions have left controversy.
Mourinho did not mention any players from his time at Old Trafford while many talented players Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Wesley Sneijder and Marcelo were ignored. Most of Mourinho’s squad were his first pupils to lead Chelsea.
So who did Mourinho’s best student squad choose?
Goalkeeper Petr Cech : Not Victor Baia, the goalkeeper of Porto and Mourinho won the first European championship trophies (Europa League, Champions League). Not Julio Cesar, Inter goalkeeper with Mourinho to win Serie A and Champions League. Nor Iker Casillas (Real Madrid), David De Gea (Man Utd), Simon Courtois (Chelsea) or Hugo Lloris, Mourinho chose Cech.
The Czech goalkeeper was recruited by Chelsea in 2004, he has always been the top Premier League goalkeeper for the next 10 years. However, ironically, when Mourinho "abandoned" Cech to clear the way for Courtois to occupy the No. 1 position of Chelsea in 2014.
Right-back J avier Zanetti : Paulo Ferreira used to follow Mourinho from Porto to Chelsea, but he chose Javier Zanetti, a student at Inter Milan (2008-2010) and did not often play right-back.
When Mourinho came to Inter, he often let "old" Zanetti play in midfield, and the right defender of Inter Milan was given to Maicon.
Mourinho and Zanetti
Center-back John Terry : One of the young talents trained from Chelsea and always supporting Mourinho absolutely. "In my career, he is the best coach," Terry said of Mourinho. There are many good central defenders under the guidance of Mourinho such as Lucio, Walter Samuel, Pepe, Sergio Ramos ... but Terry is well deserved.
Center-back Ricardo Carvalho : The Portuguese player has been with Mourinho since his time in Porto, followed Mourinho to Chelsea in 2004. After that, Carvalho also moved to Real Madrid when Mourinho came here in 2010, he left when Mourinho was fired. Carvalho is technically a good center-back and with the strong bond between the two, Mourinho cannot ignore Carvalho.
Left-back William Gallas : Why a French defender? Perhaps a lot of people will be surprised at Mourinho’s choice. Gallas did not have a permanent position when Mourinho arrived at Chelsea, he often rotated between center-back and full-back in two seasons. So Chivu, Marcelo or Branislav Ivanovic must be very pleased.
William Gallas
Midfielder Claude Makelele : The French midfielder belongs to Mourinho’s favorite player, wherever Mourinho wants to own a central midfielder like Makelele in the squad. Makelele is a defensive midfielder who annoys his opponents, because he often does not go more than half the pitch and is very strong in hand-to-hand disputes.
Center midfielder Frank Lampard : The Englishman was raised under Mourinho to become one of the best central midfielders in the world of his generation. Lampard has been nicknamed "people without lungs" because of his ability to play continuously under Mourinho.
Attacking midfielder Mesut Ozil : There are many talented attacking midfielders led by Mourinho such as Deco, Sneijder, they have with him achieved great success. However, Mourinho chose Ozil, the German player with three years working with Mourinho at Real Madrid.
Mourinho directed Ozil to play when they were at Real Madrid
Winger Cristiano Ronaldo : CR7 has been the best player in the world for more than a decade, so Mourinho chose him to be completely understandable.
Winger Eden Hazard : The Belgian star worked with Mourinho during 2013-2015, although the relationship between the two was not really warm, but the Portuguese strategist still chose the Belgian player. . They only have one Premier League trophy together.
Striker Didier Drogba : "Elephant forest" is the fear of the European defense when Mourinho brought him to Chelsea in 2004. Mourinho used to manage many outstanding strikers like Eto’o, Ibra, but Didier Drogba still stand out.
