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Written by Martin Graham | May 21 2022
Roma coach Jose Mourinho has claimed that expectations in his last two jobs, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United, were unrealistic.
The legendary Portuguese coach took over from another legendary tactician, Louis van Gaal, at Old Trafford when the Dutchman failed to achieve the heights reached by the club under Sir Alex Ferguson despite winning the FA Cup in 2016.
Mourinho went on to win the Community Shield, the Carabao Cup, the UEFA Europa League as well as the FA Cup for Van Gaal, these titles being the last titles won by Man United since then. He was later sacked and replaced by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who also suffered the same fate but without winning any titles.
The former Chelsea boss moved to Tottenham and within two years, he was eliminated from the role. Mourinho would later accept a job as Roma coach, returning to Serie A for the second time after leading Inter Milan to the only treble in Italian history in 2010.
He has now led the Giallorossi to the UEFA European Conference League Final, his first European final in 31 years, overcoming claims that he is out of date for the major tournaments.
After reaching the final, Mourinho sent a word of congratulation to his friend Carlo Ancelotti who took over at Everton and was also in the same position as he was in the Premier League.
Ancelotti confirmed his place in the UEFA Champions League Final that same week and Mourinho tasked them both with going and winning the finals.
Mourinho says: The weight of expectation is due to winning careers
At the season’s final press conference in Serie A, Mourinho was asked about those comments and whether he thought critics were wrong about him and Ancelotti. Instead, the former Porto manager mentioned the fact that the two teams he and Ancelotti coached were not expected to win titles in the first place.
He said: “I think Carlo Ancelotti’s problem was that when you coach Everton you are not close to winning the Champions League!
“And with me, you know, people who have seen me take jobs where they thought I could win awards, but they weren’t jobs where we were expected to raise awards. But when you have such a winning career on a rotating basis, so to speak, you can expect it, People can say that.
I personally am not worried about this [being replaced by younger coaches]. I don’t think and I don’t focus on generations, I focus on quality.”
Mourinho has also defiantly told his critics that he, as well as Ancelotti, are far from top-level. “It’s a matter of quality, drive, and passion. Without passion you’re finished. Without the stress of preparing for the big games you’re finished,” he said.
“I know myself well, and I know Carlito well too, but there are more examples we can give. But we are the ones who will call it when we want to stop, and I’m afraid people will have to wait so long before I say it’s over!”
