Forced me to think a lot: Jose Mourinho reveals player who helped shape him as coach

The Portuguese manager names the player who always made him question his tactics.

In an interview, the current Fenerbahçe head coach, Jose Mourinho, has credited Lionel Messi for developing him as a manager despite never having coached him in his managerial career.

However, they instead met when they were on opposing teams. Messi has often faced Mourinho during his time at FC Barcelona, while the Portuguese head coach was the manager of Real Madrid and Inter Milan.

Messi has given Jose Mourinho many sleepless nights. During the former Chelsea manager’s time at Madrid, the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner was at the peak of his playing career. The Argentinian helped Barcelona cruise past Los Blancos almost single-handedly most of the time.

Lionel Messi has helped develop Jose Mourinho as a coach

Despite often facing the Argentine during his time in LaLiga, Mourinho has nothing but praise for the former Barca man. He always lauded the player’s ability to influence the game, and once again, the 62-year-old hailed Messi.

When asked who helped him develop the most as a coach, Mourinho didn’t mince his words and was straightforward in answering the question. The Portuguese coach said:

”Messi”

When asked why, he further said: “Because every time we played against him, he forced me to think a lot.”

Indeed, Mourinho was always left clueless whenever he faced Lionel Messi, as the former Paris Saint-Germain star was too good to be stopped by any coach and their system.

Their tactics were designed to neutralise his threat on the pitch, but they often fell short against Messi, who always found a way to outclass their teams on the field.

Despite never coaching Messi, Mourinho has always hoped to manage the 38-year-old in his managerial career, as he stated in the past, his wish was to work with him.

But fate had other plans as Messi always played against Mourinho’s team. However both enjoyed a fair share of wins. Both are now worlds apart, as Messi is playing in America, while Mourinho is managing Turkish club Fenerbahçe.

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