Jose Mourinho and
Louis van Gaal insist their
friendship will survive whatever happens when Chelsea look to cement their POSITION on
top of the Premier League with a statement victory at Manchester United on
Sunday.
Mourinho has never
hidden his distain for some of his managerial rivals, with Arsenal’s Arsene
Wenger and Aston Villa’s
Paul Lambert crossing swords with the Chelsea boss already this season, and the
prospect of a crucial clash with a team capable of ending his side’s unbeaten
start would usually bring out the antagonist in the Portuguese coach.
Yet there should be a
refreshing lack of animosity on the sidelines at Old Trafford this weekend,
however heated the action becomes on the pitch, because Mourinho and
United MANAGER van
Gaal have a bond that dates back 17 years to the day their paths first crossed
at Barcelona.
Mourinho, then
labouring in anonymity as a translator and assistant to Barcelona MANAGER Bobby
Robson, was kept on by van Gaal when he took over at the Nou Camp
and earned the trust of his new boss to such an extent that he was allowed to
take training sessions and give team-talks.
Van Gaal saw a kindred spirit in Mourinho, who like the Dutchman is an
obsessive workaholic who had trained as a PE teacher, and the two men lived
only 15 metres from each other in an apartment block, often meeting around
their dining tables to
talk football.
The partnership lasted
until Mourinho left to start his managerial CAREER with Benfica in 2000 and the ties between
the pair remain strong, with Mourinho PAYING tribute
to his mentor when asked about van Gaal’s influence on him.
“As a young coach to
be WORKING with
Louis at a club like Barcelona was very important,” Mourinho said.
“Everybody knows the
respect I have for him. I never hide the respect, the relationship and the fact
he was an important influence in my CAREER.
“He knows what I feel
about him. The world knows, because I never hide. What can I add?”
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