Stories about travels from José Mourinho to Brazil

José Mourinho coaching the União Leiria FC in 2001

Elected the best coach of the world in 2010, the controversial Jose Mourinho visited Brazil several times before the fame. Brazilian Agents who met the Portuguese coach have some stories to tell about the current Real Madrid manager.Believe it ! Mourinho has already came to Brazil to watch training sessions of minuscule teams from third division and an unexpressive regional derby between small clubs in the south of the country only to look and find good players. The ex-defender and now agent Jorge Baidek, was agent of the “Special One” 10 years ago and tells how he found a job for ‘Mou’. “He came to my office in Lisbon and in five minutes I got the União Leiria FC, a small portuguese club. Amazingly, after the early games, the club president was not satisfied and told me ‘This coach (Mourinho) is crazy, he sets the team in a very risky situation on the games’ (laughs)”.In 2001, José Mourinho was still coaching União Leiria FC. He came to Brazil along Baidek to try signing some players. They go to watch matches of small teams in simple stadiums from brazilian third division: Caxias x Juventude in Caxias do Sul city and Juventus x Nacional in São Paulo city. “After that, Mourinho still went to watch the training session of Ceará FC in north of the country and came back to Rio de Janeiro city, where he found what he wanted: two good strikers: Derlei from Madureira FC (brazilian third division), and Moacir, from Volta Redonda FC (brazilian fourth division)” said Baidek.

Coaching the Porto FC..

Mourinho brought Carlos Alberto from Brazil to get Champions League title in 2004

In 2003, José Mourinho was coaching the FC Porto, one of the giants from portuguese football, and returned to Brazil. The mission was to observe closely the left-back Gustavo Nery, from São Paulo FC, but he ended up amazed with another player: the young midfielder Carlos Alberto, from Fluminense FC. Two months later Carlos Alberto was at Porto FC after Mourinho ask right away for Porto FC officers to buy the player. “He is absolutely spectacular” said about Carlos Alberto (current playing in Vasco da Gama) countless times the ‘Special One’ on occasion.“In that time Mourinho was still unknown in Brazil, so he watched the game São Paulo FC x Fluminense from bleachers of stadium together with Sao Paulo FC fans (laughs)” reports Baidek, adding “Mourinho loves Brazil, he said that everything was cheap and he made many purchases at the mall” concluded.