5 top players that Jose Mourinho got rid of too early

Jose Mourinho is one of the best coaches in the world who has managed some of the biggest clubs in the world (FC Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid, Manchester United)

Even though Mourinho has led his clubs to many trophies, he has been criticized for not nourishing young talent.

Here are the players sold by Mourinho who have gone on to become stars elsewhere

#5 Arjen Robben

The bald genius, Robben felt underappreciated by Mourinho at Chelsea

A world-class attacking winger renowned for his precise left foot long-range shots from the right wing, Robben started his career as a winger for the Dutch club FC Groningen.

He then signed for PSV Eindhoven and became the Netherlands Young Player of the Year 2002-03. Following his impressive stint at PSV, he joined Premier League heavyweights Chelsea in 2004. Robben helped Chelsea to win two consecutive Premier League titles.

Despite achieving great success in his three years with the club, Robben was duly sold to Real Madrid in 2007. He claimed that it was a "relief" to leave Chelsea and said that he felt a lack of support from manager Jose Mourinho. The Bayern Munich winger has questioned Mourinho's football philosophy of sacrificing attractive football for results. Mourinho regarded Robben as the forgotten man of Chelsea and criticized him for being dishonest on the pitch.

After leaving Chelsea, Robben has won a total of fifteen trophies with Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. He is one of a few players to have ever won league titles in four different countries.

#4 Andre Schurrle

Schurrle never really got going under Mourinho at Chelsea

He began his professional footballing career at FSV Mainz in 2009. Schurrle then moved to Bayer Leverkusen and played two impressive seasons. His performances there gained Chelsea's attention, who signed him in 2013.

Schurrle helped Chelsea to 2014-15 Premier League title by scoring five times in his 22 appearances. Despite being a solid performer, Mourinho sold him to Wolfsburg. Schurrle criticized Mourinho for showing him the brutal side of a career in football. He also criticized Mourinho's demanding approach.

But Schurrle turned out to be a consistent performer for Wolfsburg. After leaving Chelsea, he won the DFB-Pokal and DFL-Supercup in his first year at Wolfsburg. He also won the 2016 DFB-Pokal with Borussia Dortmund.

#3 Leonardo Bonucci

Leo was never given a fair chance to prove himself while Mourinho was at Inter Milan

Bonucci began his career with Viterbese. He then moved to Inter Milan where he was offered very few first-team appearances.

Mourinho never utilized the services of Bonucci. He loaned him out immediately after taking charge of Inter Milan. Bonucci was regarded surplus to requirements by Jose Mourinho. In the end, he was sold to Treviso for a meager €3.4m.

Bonucci was signed by Juventus in 2010. He was instrumental for Juventus in winning six Serie A titles, three Coppa Italia titles, and three Supercoppa Italiana titles. In addition to his defensive, playmaking and technical skills, Bonucci has also been praised for his leadership. He also scored for Juventus in the 2017 Coppa Italia final.

Mourinho's decision to sell him has proved wrong by the achievements of Bonucci.

#2 Mohamed Salah

Salah has grown in leaps and bounds since he left Chelsea

Salah started his career with El Mokawloon. He then moved to Basel and scored nine goals in 47 appearances. He signed for Chelsea following his stunning performance for Basel.

Salah received few chances at Chelsea. The Egyptian failed to make an impact in 12 months under Jose Mourinho. He blamed Salah for not performing well against Shrewsbury in 2015 Capital One Cup. As a result, Salah was loaned out to Italian club. Fiorentina

Salah joined Liverpool on 22nd June 2017. The Egypt superstar has flourished at Liverpool since joining the Reds from Roma. He has scored fifteen goals for Liverpool and is the second highest goal scorer of the 2017-18 Premier League season.

#1 Kevin De Bruyne

The one who should never have left, Mourinho and Chelsea will always regret De Bruyne's sale

De Bruyne is currently the Premier League's king of chance creation. He is a versatile attacking midfielder who can also play as a winger or second striker.

He began his career with Belgian Club Genk where he scored sixteen goals in 97 appearances. Following his impressive stint at Genk, Chelsea signed him in 2012.

However, he was forced to leave Chelsea in 2014 as he was given only nine first-team appearances. Mourinho regarded him as an immature kid and De Bruyne has revealed how the manager’s obsession with statistics led to disagreements and his departure from Chelsea.

After leaving Chelsea, de Bruyne showed his talent to the world. He was the standout performer of Wolfsburg in 2014-15 and won the DFB-Pokal and DFL-Supercup with the club. He has also won the English League Cup 2015-16 with Manchester City.

The trophies and achievements of De Bruyne show the intensity of the mistake made by Jose Mourinho.