The Not So Special One - What Caused The Fall Of Portugal's Favourite Son?

"Please don't call me arrogant, but I'm European champion and I think I'm a special one." During his first interview with the English media, Jose Mourinho went from a newly established young Portuguese man looking to cement his legacy, to a must see commodity of the English game. When Jose, who still to this day is dubbed as the special one, won the Champions League with FC Porto, he caught the eye of Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, which led to Mourinho being appointed by the Russian as the new manager of London club Chelsea in 2004. What followed was Chelsea’s first league title in fifty years, capped off with records for the least goal conceded in history for the English top flight and the most points ever recorded in a thirty eight game season. When you pair these records with a Carling Cup victory and an impressive run in the UEFA Champions League, the football fans of England and around the world, where instantly in awe of the special one. His tenure at Chelsea lasted until 2007 when he departed the club, under mutual consent with the owner. 

However this did not harm his stance as perhaps the best manager in the world and before long was the new boss of Italian giants Inter Milan. Here he continued his eye catching personality, in Italian! Speaking the language fluently in his first interview, claiming to have learnt it in less than three weeks. It was acts like this which kept the world media attracted, and it didn’t take long for the Italians to fall for Jose just as the English media had in the years prior. By the end of 2010 Jose had won all there was to with the Italians, securing a historic treble in his final game! His players had truly came to love their boss, with long standing Inter defender Marco Materazzi sobbing on camera when told of Mourinho’s departure to perhaps the biggest club side in the world. Real Madrid.

Real Madrid, Los Blancos, the galacticos, the team from the Spanish capital are perhaps the biggest in the world, but over the years there is one position where they have struggled to fill with a name deserving of the title, the manager of Real Madrid. During his first season at the Santiago Bernebeau (Real Madrid’s home stadium) Jose led his new side to a points record for the club, however despite this he could only manage his side to second place, with Catalan giants Barcelona winning the Spanish Premier Division title. For the first time in his career, the media did not instantly swoon to the special one upon his arrival in Spain, and instead they questioned his methods. However those methods next season led to Los Blancos secured the league title, finishing 9 points clear of last season’s winners Barcelona. This results led to the Madrid players actually bowing to Jose in the celebrations, showing just how strong Jose’s bond is with his players! Just as much as a group of his players adored him, the media in Spain came to hate the Portuguese manager. In the following season, the relationship between Jose and his captain Iker Casillas soured, which caused major backlash in the media.  "I am loved by some clubs, especially one. In Spain it is different; some people hate me, many of you in this (press) room." This quote was not long before Mourinho said how this season, which turned out to be his last with the club, was the worst of his career!

In the summer of 2013, Mourinho returned to Chelsea, the move the world of football had been expecting since his departure 6 years prior.  He returned to where he was adored by both the fans and the media, and all of the controversial language he had used in his first tenor came with him upon his return to the Premier League.  In his first season back in London, he moulded the current team into one which appeared to be as will to play for him as any before, and by the end of his second year back, his Chelsea team had effectively walked to the title, losing only three games all season and winning manager of the year in the process. Mourinho was as indestructible as ever, which is why what happened next makes no sense.

Just seven months after Chelsea secured the title in impressive fashion, they were placed 16^th and in the midst of a potential relegation battle! This incredible decline lead to Jose Mourinho being released from his contract, the question is what caused this?

Many miniature incidents during the beginning of their season could be the fault of Chelsea’s downfall, the poor form of star men Eden Hazard, Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas? The spine of José’s title winning team looked a shadow of their former selves. The Portuguese manager has always been controversial but the many derogatory comments made about FA representatives during his final season point to a man under pressure, and lacking support. This backlash from the English media can be pointed to something other than Chelsea’s form. The handling of Eva Carnerio, the former Chelsea physio who has since been fired.  Carnerio rushed onto the pitch during the first game of Jose’s final season at Chelsea to attend to an injury for Eden Hazard after twice being summoned by the referee. Mourinho slammed her actions as unprofessional and banned her from the dugout for the remainder of his tenor as manager.

The actions of the manager appeared to be the actions of a man trying to make an example, and this opinion of his actions where broadcast in the media, meaning for the first time since his first interview in England, Jose did not have the backing of the media.  The backlash was extraordinary and even the players, who has spent the last 24 months falling in love with their boss, had appeared to turn their back on his.  This lead to a side of Mourinho we haven’t seen before in England, a nervous, under pressure man trying to shift the attention from himself. This side of Mourinho drove his players further away from him and before long they players did not appear to want to play for the man. A combination of a barrage from the media and his own players turning a cold shoulder led to Mourinho losing his job in December of 2015.

 If you ask me, it wasn’t Chelsea’s form which led to the changing attitude of the special one. It was the changing attitude of Mourinho, the insistence on shifting the blame, the determination to make himself seem indestructible which eventually led to his destruction and to Chelsea’s incredible fall from grace. 

England - When is the real 'golden generation' going to begin?

As qualifying for thist years European Championship draws to a close, England boast the only perfect record in qualifying, with 10 wins from 10. A strong qualifying campaign is, for most teams, a sign of intent for the major tournament, however for England, its been quite the opposite on more occasions then most. The best example of this in recent years is perhaps the 2010 World Cup in south Africa, despite a very strong qualifying campaign and a new manager in Fabio Capello who had appeared to rejuvenate the three lions. However, just one win in the tournament and a 4-1 humbling by the Germans showed how far behind we appear to be compared to the rest of the top sides and that our strong qualifying counted for nothing! This underachievement at major tournaments has because a far too common occurrence for the nation which invented the sport, and is even worse when you consider the players who have pulled on the famous white shirt in the last 20+ years!

Since the turn of the millennium, the national team haven't progressed past the quarter finals in a single major competition, with many of those eliminations coming against side which we Englishmen compare ourselves to, but seems to be years ahead of England in terms of ability and progression.  One other thing that happened at the start of the 2000's was perhaps the worst thing that could have happened to the current crop of talent, that certain English side was declared as the 'golden generation' this put much unneeded pressure on the players, and made the poor performances at major tournaments an even more bitter pill to swallow. Players such as Wayne Rooney, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, David Beckham, Michael Owen, John Terry and many many more players where tipped to lead the 1966 World Champions to glory, but under performed when it mattered most!

With countries such as Germany, Spain and France in the last 2 decades taking advantage of a generation of amazing talent to push themselves to the top of the footballing world, you have to wonder if the three lions are capable of achieving a similar task. When you consider the caliber of players to have played at Wembley and failed to deliver on the big stage in recent years, you have to wonder if our current crop of talent, who are seen as being not even half the side we had 10 years ago, have the slightest chance at competing next year in France or in future tournaments.

Lets not rule out the current squad without taking a look at the key members. Of course the highest goal scorer in the history of the national side is the current captain, Wayne Rooney, with 50 international goals. With Daniel Sturridge (when he's fit), Harry Kane and inform Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy adding more options to the England attack, the three lions certainly still have their bite! When you add in the attacking threat from the wings, with Raheem Sterling and Theo Walcott being the stand outs for those roles, England have got pace in abundance. The worry for this English side comes from the back, I would personally not put a single midfielder in the current England squad, into the side we fielded ten years ago, with the stand out player on form at the moment being Ross Barkley, who has been incredibly inconsistent in the past few seasons. With defenders such as Gary Cahill, Chris Smalling, Ryan Bertrand and Nathaniel Clyne, Roy Hodgson can field a strong back four, but one which pales in comparison to English defenses of the past! One final positive is the strength between the sticks, Joe Hart has been a stand our goal keeper in the Premier League for years, and number two Jack Butland looks destined for greatness.

Despite not losing a single competitive game in 2015, I can't see our current crop of talent getting anywhere near the top spots in world football. In the future, a new generation may come along and push England towards greater heights but right now... It looks like we might be waiting a while for the true 'Golden Generation'.

El Ca$hico - The Premier League battle of riches

Since the turn of the century the English Premier League has become over run with teams trying to buy their way to success. Without a doubt the two teams with the most success are Manchester City and Chelsea, these two sides have been the most consistent sides at challenging for the title in the last four or five seasons due to the amount of money they have spent in creating the strongest squads in the league.


Coming into the 2015/2016 Premier League season, Chelsea and Manchester City have won one each out of the last two titles, and have been named as the two favourites for this campaign. El Ca$hico as the fixture has been came to be known was first the first big clash of the season, with the Manchester club running out comfortable 3-0 winners, confirming their challenge for the title. Early on in this season the holders Chelsea have struggled to put in the performances which made winning last seasons title so visibly easy, the question is can they get back on track to retain their title, or will Manchester City keep up their early season dominance and win the Premier League title. Today I will compare these two sides and state which side I feel will win the 2015/2016 Premier League title.


Starting with the title holders Chelsea, Jose Mourinho turned heads with his signings at the start of last season, bringing in the likes of Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa, these two player topped the league in goals and assists and played a massive part in their title winning campaign. However at the start of this season, unlike all their title rivals who have spent big to improve their sides, Chelsea had failed to add to the team that won last years title, with the exception of Manchester United misfit Radamel Falcao. Until late on in the transfer window, Chelsea completed the signing of Spanish winger Pedro, who put in a man of the match performance on his debut, scoring the opening goal in the 3-2 win over West Brom. However, this transfer period can without a doubt be declared as a failure for Jose Mourinho's side, as they failed to secure Everton defender John Stones, a man they chased throughout the duration of the summer. The reason this failed signing is having such an impact on Chelsea's season is the drop in form of former England captain John Terry. The Chelsea skipper has been a first team regular since the early 2000's in the Chelsea back for, but at the age of 34, many suggest that he may be past his best days. Many individual mistakes, as well as his first red card in five years is a big factor in why the champions are left with only four points after their first four games, the second worst tally at this point of the season for defending champions in premier League history.


In the 2014/2015 season one thing that was pretty much assured when Chelsea played was that the Belgium winger Eden Hazard would put in a solid performance for the blue, and more often then not, would play a big hand in a Chelsea win. However at the start of this season, the PFA player of the year has struggled to carry on the form from last season as this has had a sizable impact of Chelsea's performances so far this time round. The Chelsea number 10 looks much more similar to the Hazard we saw when he first arrived in England, unfit and unable to deal with the physical demands of the Premier League. Now I'm in no doubt that the playmaker will return to his previous form sooner or later, but the question is whether he can have as much of an impact on Chelsea's results as he did last season. If Chelsea hope to retain their title, they may have to hope their star man returns to his previous great form as soon as possible.


Now onto the worlds richest club, Manchester City. Sheikh Mansour's side have won two out of the last four premier league titles, their first since 1968, finishing second in the other two seasons, they have also secured one FA Cup and one Capital One Cup. They have done this by being the highest spending side in the league year after year, spending over £1,000,000,000 since Shaikh bought the club in 2008, it makes City the second highest spending side in premier league history (behind Chelsea), and they have done this in much shorter time then their closest rivals. After spending much of the previous two decades jumping between the first and second tier of English football, its a welcomed change of pace for the City fans to see their side at the peak of English football. Manchester City have also recently broke the premier league transfer record, signing Kevin De Bruyne from Wolfsburg for an estimated £55,000,000, the addition of the Belgium international took City's spending for this summer to £153,000,000. Its spending like this that has made City one of the must successful sides in the Premier League over recent years, and its spending like this which has made them one of the top contenders for this years title.


Manchester City have started the 2015/2016 season at top pace, winning all four of their opening four games, including a dominant victory over champions Chelsea. With consistency being the main reason City failed to defend their title last season, this start to the campaign will put smiles on many City fans faces. The addition of 2015 golden boy winner Raheem Sterling, along side the returning Sergio Aguero, the Spaniard David Silva in some of the best form of his career, and the return to form of Yaya Toure has seen Manchester City play some of the best football we've seen in the premier League in recent years, and they look like the out right favourites for the title early on. Manchester City skipper Vincent Kompany came under plenty of criticism throughout last season for failing to live up to the high standards he had set for himself through the years. However at the start of this season the Belgium international seems to have returned to the great form which has played a big part in City's previous two title winning seasons. Alongside new boy Nicolás Otamendi, City's defence looks as strong as ever. Another knock to City's campaign last time out was the inconsistency  of number one goal keeper Joe Hart. The England number one spent periods of the season on the bench due to his inconsistency, and this had a major effect on results for the Manchester side. However Hart has started this season with four clean sheets out of four, and looks back to his best. These are all factors as to why City look to be the favourites this season.


Due to a combination of transfer window success, and early form I believe Manchester City will win the 2015/2016 Premier League title, and in crushing style too. I am going to  make a prediction that the title will be secured before the 1st of May! However nothing is certain in football, particularly in England, we will never know for sure until the final whistle for this season is blown.