Fenerbahce boss Jose Mourinho has appeared to move away from his famous nickname, ‘The Special One’. The Portuguese has instead given himself a new moniker, ‘The Foreign One’.
Mourinho called himself ‘The Special One’ during his first press conference as the Chelsea manager in 2004. He is currently in charge of Fenerbahce and joined the Turkish giants this summer. He has so far won three of his six matches, drawn two, and lost one.
Mourinho reckons he needs time to adapt to Turkish football and has given himself the new nickname as a result. Speaking in a recent press conference, he said
“I think it’s for me to adapt [to Turkish football], and not vice versa. I am the one that arrived, I am ‘The Foreign One’. I am not going to change the state of things, so I need to adapt. It’s not Turkish football that has to adapt to me. It’s me that has to adapt to Turkish football.”
Further speaking about what his team needs to do, Mourinho said:
“My players, they need to do what other teams do to us. They need to take time, they need to go on the floor. They need to stop the game, they need to simulate injuries- they need to do what every team does.”
Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce stint has started in a mixed manner. His side were eliminated by LOSC Lille in their UEFA Champions League qualifier. Fenerbahce have earned four points from their two league games so far
How did Jose Mourinho become ‘The Special One’?
Jose Mourinho joined Chelsea in 2004 as a UEFA Champions League-winning coach. He led Porto to European supremacy and overcame clubs like Real Madrid, Manchester United, and more on their way to glory.
Mourinho claimed it was not an easy task and the achievement wasn’t normal. Hence, he gave himself the moniker, ‘The Special One’, in his first Chelsea press conference. He said (via SportBIBLE):
“I have to say this. We have top players, and I’m sorry I’m a bit arrogant, we have a top manager. Please don’t call me arrogant, because what I say is true. I am a European champion, so I’m not one of the bottle. I think I’m a special one.”
Jose Mourinho has coached top European teams throughout his career. Apart from Porto and Chelsea, he has managed Inter Milan, Real Madrid, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, AS Roma, and now Fenerbahce.