He of the unstoppable ego, there is nothing Jose Mourinho loves more than stirring up trouble. One of the most successful managers in the history of the game, he will do anything he can to ensure it's his hands holding all the trophies at the end of the season and his rivals left fuming on the sidelines. His tendency to diffuse difficult situations with an imminently quotable line and a naughty grin have led to him receiving quite a bit more forgiveness than a less charismatic manager might. After being appointed Chelsea manager in 2004, he led the club to its first top flight title since 1955, with another title, two League Cups and an FA Cup following suit. Mourinho's strategy has always been to reduce pressure on his players by attracting all the attention himself. One of the most notorious examples was his accusation that referee Anders Frisk had met with Barcelona manager Frank Rikjaard at half-time during a Champions League game, supposedly leading to Frisk dismissing Drogba in the second half. Mourinho was given a two-match ban and widely condemned after Frisk retired following death threats from Chelsea fans. He was rumoured to have circumvented this ban by being smuggled into the stadium in a laundry bin for Chelsea's quarter-final tie at Bayern Munich. His run-ins with Arseal have also been legendary, from receiving a £20,000 fine for tapping up Ashley Cole in 2005, to labelling Arsene Wenger a 'voyeur' later that year and a 'specialist in failure' last February. You could write entire books about Mourinho's various misdemeanours over the years and be sure it would be a very entertaining read, but needless to say, the loyalty he inspires in his players and fans is as much down to his success as a willingness to do whatever it takes to achieve it.
28-year old English writer with a borderline obsessive passion for films, videogames, Chelsea FC, incomprehensible words and indefensible puns. Follow me on Twitter if you like infrequent outbursts of absolute drivel.
