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Jose Mourinho has managed some of the top clubs around Europe and is undoubtedly one of the best coaches ever. The Portuguese has won the league in every country he has managed, and apart from Tottenham, he has won big trophies at every club.
Taking up jobs at top clubs results in managing big players, and that leads to clashes. With Jose Mourinho, things were no different and he too had issues with some of his best players.
Without further ado, here are 5 players Jose Mourinho had an issue with:
#5 - Kevin De Bruyne
Kevin de Bruyne's mismanagement arguably went down as Jose Mourinho's biggest mistake. The then Chelsea manager was spoilt for choice in the midfield department, but he chose to leave out his most talented youngster.
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Jose Mourinho picked Oscar over Kevin de Bruyne regularly for Chelsea and that saw the Belgian ask for his sale. He eventually left the club.
Writing in the Players' Tribune, Kevin de Bruyne revealed:
"Jose called me into his office in December [2013], and it was probably the second big life-changing moment for me. He had some papers in front of him, and he said, 'One assist. Zero goals. 10 recoveries.' It took me a minute to understand what he was doing. Then he started reading the stats of the other attacking forwards - Willian, Oscar, Mata, Schürrle. And it's like - five goals, 10 assists, whatever.
"Jose was just kind of waiting for me to say something, and finally I said, 'But… some of these guys have played 15, 20 games. I've only played three. So it's going to be different, no?' It was so strange. I was completely honest. I said, 'I feel like the club doesn't really want me here. I want to play football. I'd rather you sell me.'"
#4 - Juan Mata (at Chelsea under Jose Mourinho)
Juan Mata was in the form of his life when Jose Mourinho arrived at Chelsea for his second spell at the club. The Spaniard had just won back-to-back player of the season awards after helping the Blues win the UEFA Champions League and Europa League.
But the arrival of Jose Mourinho saw Juan Mata go from first name on the teamsheet to one of the last names on the bench. The Spaniard was just not in the picture for Jose Mourinho, and just like Kevin de Bruyne, he too was overlooked on most occasions.
Explaining his decision to drop Juan Mata, Jose Mourinho said:
"It is one thing to play with Ramires and Oscar closing down opponents on each side, and Mata as a No10 behind a striker with his clever assists, clever passes and fantastic actions because he has great talent.
"But it is another thing to adapt to the way we want to play. In this moment, Oscar is my No10 and, if anyone tells me Oscar has not been Chelsea's best player this season, I'd have to disagree. I have to prove to the fans that I am good. Now [Mata] must do the same."
Juan Mata was sold to Manchester United in the 2014 January transfer window, and he has been with the Red Devils ever since.
#3 - Juan Cuadrado
Juan Cuadrado is one Chelsea player many might not remember. The Colombian was at Stamford Bridge for a season before he was loaned out to Juventus, the club he later joined permanently.
Unlike Juan Mata and Kevin de Bruyne, Jose Mourinho never gave Juan Cuadrado an explanation. The former Fiorentina star was left searching for answers and eventually got an escape route back to Serie A.
After joining Juventus, he said:
"The truth is, I don't know [what went wrong]. I was always professional, and I always trained very well. I didn't play as much as I wanted, but I was always ready. I thank God, my agent and Juventus for this opportunity. It's a new challenge for me."
#2 - Paul Pogba
The high-profile clash at Manchester United saw Jose Mourinho and Paul Pogba butting heads. The two were in good spirits in the manager's first season at the club, but things quickly turned sour.
Less than a year after winning the Europa League together, Jose Mourinho and Paul Pogba were not seeing eye-to-eye and were reportedly communicating via Rui Faria.
A quote in the media suggested the manager told the Frenchman:
"You don't play. You don't respect players and supporters. And you kill the mentality of the good honest people around you. You are like a person with a flu, with a virus in a closed room - you pass that virus to others."
Jose Mourinho was sacked by the Red Devils in December 2018, while Paul Pogba remains with Premier League side, Manchester United.
#1 - Iker Casillas
While all the players mentioned in this list so far were dropped by Jose Mourinho for tactical reasons, Iker Casillas was benched for off-field events. The Real Madrid manager accused the club captain of being the mole in the dressing room, and leaking news to the media.
Iker Casillas was benched for Diego Lopez, who did exceptionally well in goal in Jose Mourinho's final season at the Santiago Bernabeu. Casillas was later sold to FC Porto, where he finally shed light on the issue with the Portuguese manager. He said:
"He accused me of being a friend of the press. I know people in the press, how could I not know them? But, it's another thing to filter information. People were talking about me, but I kept quiet, I didn't respond and I accepted that I was being seen as the mole."
Jose Mourinho is now at AS Roma and has already been sent-off in a pre-season friendly. We might be witnessing a new version of the Portuguese manager in Serie A this season.
