By Dally Sports on December 19, 2018

Some years ago, former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger responded to a most brutal insult from Jose Mourinho, then Chelsea manager who had labelled him “specialist in failure”, by saying: “I’m embarrassed for Chelsea.”

Mourinho’s insult of Wenger was simply unwarranted, following Wenger’s granting of an interview in which he said that some English Premier League managers were playing down their title chances because they were afraid of failure.

Then Mourinho went on a loquacious rant against Wenger and that line “specialist in failure” is one of football’s most memorable quotes and has been used to mock the Frenchman over the years. 

The dignified response from Wenger simply implied that the organisation that has employed a man with such loquaciousness as Mourinho has much to lose image-wise and so it proved later with Chelsea firing the Portuguese coach a season later following a fractious relationship with his players and the club management.

Then the great Manchester United employed Mourinho to restore success to club in 2016.

When Mourinho ranted against Wenger, he added that if he failed as much as Wenger had he would walk away and not come back.

At that time Mourinho was still highly revered as the coach with the Midas touch.  The one who knew how to win titles. Three Premier League title wins, two Champions League triumphs and a host of others were the kind of success that can stand anyone out and so Mourinho stood out as a great coach.

But hubris is a dangerous thing and Mourinho had it in abundance.

Wenger was a success in his own way but results were not going his way at the time and Mourinho coined the brutal phrase on him.

But fast forward to this day, and that phrase is very much applicable to Mourinho now. With his sacking yesterday (Tuesday, December 18, 29018) as Manchester United manager, Mourinho is in some sense the real specialist in failure.

Failure to fashion out an exciting attack-based football for years, especially one that fits the status of a team like Manchester United that prides itself as an attacking side.

Failure to manage his relationship with star players and employers over the years, with the consequent loss of team spirit.

Failure to go beyond the third season with clubs.

This is not to mock Mourinho though as much as it is to remind ourselves that when we have success, it should not make us forget to be humble, because there would always be days we have to suffer and for someone with excessive pride like Mourinho, those days of suffering could be lonely indeed.

 It was Wenger who once said of Mourinho: “When you give success to stupid people it makes them more stupid and not more intelligent”.

Many football managers today exude the attitude of humility, partly because they know in the recesses of their minds that their success is partly based on luck as well as their own hard work.

They know too that success may not last forever and in every intelligent Klopp or Guardiola there could be one younger manager who could hop on the scene to steal the show of football greatness.

Seeing Mourinho getting embarrassed with sacks from top clubs over the years does not make those who have been put off by his hubris sad.

Source Daily Sports

Posted December 19, 2018

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