There’s been talk lately of Jose Mourinho returning to
the Bernabéu, in the wake of his dismissal by Chelsea F.C, when Real Madrid
finally decide to do same to Rafa Benitez, as they always do to top managers. But as I read these stories something
interesting struck me, these two managers have so far managed three clubs in
common and of the three clubs two out of them have dismissed the manager that
took over the job from the other.
In the summer of 2008 Internationale Milan appointed Jose
Mourinho, the self-proclaimed special one as their manager replacing Roberto
Mancini as manager of the club. He signed a three-year deal worth £8.3 million
a year and spent two seasons with the Milan club. During his spell as manager
he won the Scudetto and the Copa Italia in his maiden season and in his second
season won the European treble (the Champions League, the Scudetto and the Copa
Italia) the club had waited since its inception to win. Then the team from
Spain came knocking to be precise Real Madrid, the Los Merengues, they
made him their new manager after dismissing Chilean manager Manuel Pelegrini and
while in Italy the club in Milan also chose a Spaniard in the name of Rafa Benitez
to replace the special one, this move by the Milan club marked the beginning of
the Rafa-Mourinho Curse.
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| After Jose Mourinho led Inter to the treble in 2010, Rafa Benitez took over |
The Portuguese went on to win the Copa Del Rey by defeating
their fiercest rival Barcelona F.C in the final and in his second season pipped
the Catalan club to the La Liga with an impressive ……. Points the highest
achieved by any club in league as at that time.
But in Italy Rafa Benitez didn't live to see out his first
term even to talk two full seasons at the helm of the Italian club, he was sent
packing by the clubs Hierarchy just six months into his first season after a
loss in the UEFA Super Cup to Atletico Madrid and a poor start to the defense
of their Scudetto title meant he left the club wining nothing. During his short
reign Rafa made it clear the club needed new signing an idea the clubs
Hierarchy disliked as the club had previously spent millions of euros on player
acquisitions and felt there was no need to splash the cash on new signings.
This made Rafa Benitez the first manager under the Moratti Hierarchy not to
sign a single player.
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| Benitez is sacked after he takes over a club whose immediate past manager was the special one. |
Fast Forward to 2012/2013 and Rafa Benitez is made interim
manager of Chelsea F.C replacing Roberto Di Matteo after a not so good start to
the season by the team in blue. The team fails to qualify to the knock out
stage of the Champions League slipping into the UEFA Europa League. However,
Rafa’s arrival sees them win the Europa League for the 2012/13 season and
qualify for next seasons Champions League group stage.
In the summer of 2013 Jose Mourinho
returns to the bridge for the second time and interestingly enough this time
Mourinho takes over from Benitez the man he left Inter with only to be sacked
six months later. As if Benitez was trying to punish Mourinho for what he did
to him at inter, Benitez’s win of the Europa League meant Jose’s first official
match for Chelsea will be the UEFA Super Cup, exactly the same situation
Benitez faced when he took over from Mourinho at Inter. Similarly, Chelsea lost
out to the then European Champions F.C Bayern Munich on penalties. Two seasons
and five months down the line Mourinho is sacked by the team he took over
charge from Rafa. A at least Mourinho managed to win the Premier League with
Chelsea and spent more than season at helm of the club.
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The special one is also sacked by Chelsea F.C a club which was
previously managed by Rafa Benitez just before Mourinho took over.
|
Deducing from what happened at
Inter and now at Chelsea I don’t think Mourinho will be naïve in taking over
the job at Real Madrid after the Bernabéu club decide to axe Mr. Benitez and
also given that Jose Mourinho choose to return to Chelsea the only club he has
managed twice and I don’t believe Jose will thread on that same part as in the
case of Real Madrid.
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