How Rejection Fuelled Mourinho's Second Champions League Triumph

"To find beauty successful ugliness is nan state of nan poet. The astir beautiful conclusion of my career."

Acclaimed English novelist Thomas Hardy and erstwhile Chelsea head Jose Mourinho.

At first glance, not evident kindred spirits.

But Hardy's thoughts - and Mourinho's hard-line pragmatism - really make nan root of nan supra lines ambiguous: a post-match quote aliases a poet's postscript?

Understanding nan origins and making of Mourinho is simply a cardinal tenet of a caller BBC Sport documentary - How to Win nan Champions League: Jose Mourinho.

A immense chunk of that penetration tin beryllium boiled down to a life-altering alteration successful guidance successful nan summertime of 2008.

A sliding doors infinitesimal successful nan corridors of nan Camp Nou that profoundly changed Mourinho.

A infinitesimal of rejection and a resulting displacement to realpolitik that nan famed Victorian realist Hardy would person been proud of.

"That's nan infinitesimal wherever Mourinho becomes nan Dark Lord," Guardian journalist Jonathan Wilson explains.

The infinitesimal to return tiki-taka to task: "If they're going to play to entertain, I will make judge cipher has immoderate nosy ever again."

The rejection successful mobility came successful nan summertime of 2008. Barcelona were looking for a caller manager, having sacked 2006 Champions League victor Frank Rijkaard.

The prime was betwixt Mourinho and one-time mate Pep Guardiola.

The brace had collaborated intimately successful nan 2nd half of nan 1990s erstwhile Mourinho was moving arsenic Bobby Robson and Louis van Gaal's assistant, and Guardiola was nan Barca captain.

The determination was not needfully taken connected merit - fixed that Mourinho had a Champions League and Premier League title connected his CV, while Guardiola had only conscionable vanished his first twelvemonth successful guidance pinch Barca's reserves.

It was a determination that was highly unpopular pinch Mourinho and went connected to substance his methods - and fuel, astir notably, a desire to put triumph supra each else.

Especially nan aesthetic.

The zenith of Mourinho's pragmatism, and arguably his full managerial career, came astatine nan Nou Camp connected nan measurement to nan 2nd of his Champions League wins, successful 2010. Mourinho's Inter arrived astatine nan location of Guardiola's reigning European champions pinch a 3-1 lead from nan semi-final first leg.

The Barca religious believed. "The ambiance earlier nan lucifer was intense," Zanetti remembers. "When we went connected to nan transportation astatine nan commencement location was an tremendous banner pinch 'comeback' written successful Catalan."

A 28th-minute reddish paper for Inter's Thiago Motta strengthened that belief. But it besides ushered successful a 60-minute show of defiance that Mourinho believes defined himself and his full career.

"If I could take 1 of my team's astir affectional performances successful my profession of much than 20 years, I person to take that one," Mourinho says of that Nou Camp night.

"We spell to Barcelona and we cognize what was waiting for america successful position of ambiance and nan astonishing value of that team.

"To play pinch 10 players successful Barcelona becomes epic. You request heroes. You request to person nan champion retired of everybody.

"I deliberation I was superb successful nan measurement I organised nan team.

"We defended pinch everything we had - pinch hearts, pinch souls.

"This is nan astir beautiful conclusion of my career.

"We gave perfectly everything. We mislaid 1-0. But we sewage to nan final."

Having sewage to nan final, Inter went connected to triumph it pinch Mourinho erstwhile again coming retired connected apical successful a friend-turned-foe showdown - this clip against a Bayern Munich broadside managed by his erstwhile Barca leader Van Gaal.

For nan Portuguese it was a 2nd Champions League triumph - and, for nan 2nd time, an against-the-odds win, successful which Mourinho's man-management skills were beforehand and centre.

Porto's triumph successful 2004 was besides an underdog communicative (the only broadside since nan move of nan period from extracurricular Europe's large 5 leagues to triumph nan Champions League) and besides a communicative wherever Mourinho's man-management came to nan fore.

Benni McCarthy scored 4 goals to thief them to nan last and says of Mourinho: "He was passionate, caring and a maestro tactician. I had ne'er seen that.

"He was nan first head I encountered who knew almost everything astir each azygous subordinate - nan backgrounds, wherever they travel from. How galore family members do you have? Are your mum and dada still alive?

"He wanted to cognize astir my upbringing, my struggles, nan highs and lows. I conscionable thought that was an unbelievable touch.

"I didn't moreover cognize group successful shot did that until Jose. I played for a fewer managers anterior to that. None of them knew me. With Jose, it was nan complete opposite.

"I was like: 'wow, what a head to play for'.

"And you would tally done a ceramic wall for him."

Mourinho agrees. "The instruction went pinch maine each complete my career. When I spell to European competition, I ever consciousness that I tin win.

"If you build a beardown team, a squad pinch awesome tactical culture, pinch a awesome resilience, pinch intelligence stableness to header pinch nan difficult moments, particularly successful nan knockout games. You ever person a chance.

"Champions League winners are ever teams. They will person players that, successful a definite moment, make nan difference. But only teams do it, and very complete teams."

Mourinho's man-management style hasn't ever worked of people - his spells astatine Manchester United and Tottenham featured high-profile spats pinch high-profile players, specified arsenic Paul Pogba and Dele Alli.

But, arsenic erstwhile Inter Milan skipper Zanetti attests, during nan 2010 Champions League campaign, Mourinho was nan maestro man-manager and creator of a squad culture.

Six years aft Porto nan method utilized to forge a squad had a South American flavour, but nan result was nan same.

"Mourinho created a family," Zanetti said. "We created this group during nan week, erstwhile we had our asados [Argentine barbeques], which Mourinho liked too.

"It was a infinitesimal for unity - a family moment.

"I erstwhile said I would propulsion myself into a occurrence for Jose Mourinho. Our narration was not simply head to subordinate aliases head to captain, it was overmuch more. It was a very beardown quality bond, and it ever will be.

"Those 2 years were very important for maine and for him… and will stay successful our hearts forever. He taught america truthful overmuch and he made america judge that we could make history, and we did."

Zanetti's "remain successful our hearts" sentimentality is not thing you'd people subordinate pinch Mourinho's ruthless pragmatism.

After some of his Champions League triumphs nan Portuguese head was successful a caller occupation wrong weeks, first clip information moving to Chelsea and, successful 2010, leaving for Real Madrid.

Once more, it was a realpolitik that punctuates nan Portuguese's profession - and would beryllium good pinch nan realism of Hardy. Getting nan occupation done, and past moving connected to pastures new, erstwhile you are astatine nan highest of your powers - some managerial and financial.

But successful How to Win nan Champions League: Jose Mourinho, behind-the-scenes archive footage from nan Bernabeu - successful nan contiguous aftermath of nan 2010 Champions League last - shows a different broadside of Mourinho.

The footage shows nan Portuguese head being driven retired of nan stadium, past a squad autobus he'd rushed disconnected minutes earlier pinch hardly a word. He's leaving immediately, pinch a move to Real Madrid successful nan offing.

However, erstwhile he spots 1 of his cardinal generals, Marco Materazzi, he's incapable to make specified a acold exit. Mourinho gets retired of nan car and nan brace stock a tender, tearful clasp earlier Mourinho goes backmost to nan conveyance and yet turns his backmost connected Inter.

His adjacent nationalist sighting was erstwhile he was announced arsenic Madrid head 9 days later.

On nan look of it nan velocity of this turnaround suggests Inter was a mercenary intends to an extremity alternatively than a seminal moment.

The tears, and Mourinho's relationship 15 years later, show a different, much sentimental tale.

"I ran distant - I went to nan autobus to opportunity goodbye, and I didn't moreover shingle 1 hand," Mourinho says.

"I wanted to escape. I deliberation if I get connected to nan bus, if I spell backmost pinch them to Milan, if I locomotion into a afloat San Siro, if I locomotion into nan Duomo [Milan Cathedral] afloat of people, I deliberation I wouldn't spell to Real Madrid.

"I deliberation nan emotion would extremity maine to go.

"But I wanted to go. I thought it was nan correct moment. I had to escape.

"Marco was there. If alternatively of Marco it was Dejan Stankovic, aliases Diego Milito aliases Julio Cesar, it would person been nan aforesaid story."

In galore ways nan duality of that infinitesimal defines Mourinho, and nan mobility of really he won his 2 Champions League titles.

Creating a fiercely loyal narration pinch his players disconnected nan transportation which ensured nan broadside that stepped connected nan section would beryllium comfortable some moving done walls, and pinch their backs to nan wall.

Fifteen years later Mourinho whitethorn person mellowed slightly. His man-management skills and prima value whitethorn person waned too.

But nan ego, assurance and pridefulness successful his career-defining Champions League victories remains arsenic beardown arsenic ever.

As Mourinho pointedly remarks, some his Porto and Inter triumphs person not been repeated.

"Why americium I now present speaking pinch you?," he says.

"It is not because I americium now astatine Fenerbahce, aliases because I won nan Premier League pinch Chelsea.

"It is because I americium a double Champions League winner. That is nan reason.

"I deliberation location are different teams and clubs that erstwhile you do it, different guys [managers] past do it.

"I do this season. You do adjacent season. Three years later, different will travel and past group will beryllium moreover confused successful which play you won it.

"You spell to Real Madrid, to Barcelona, to Manchester United, to these large teams and possibly group don't person nan aforesaid feeling.

"But you spell to Porto and you spell to you spell to Milan and everybody knows.

"2004 Champions League winner, 2010 Champions League winner.

"Who was nan coach? Mourinho."