Is Mourinho the best manager of modern times?

Sgt Pepper 64

As Mourinho closes in on his first spanish title after the stunning 2-1 defeat of his Barca nemisis on their own soil, he would be adding to a growing list of trophys and records that span an incredible 4 separate leagues:

2 Champions Leagues (With 2 different clubs); 1 Uefa Cup; 6 domestic titles (2 Portugal, 2 England, 2 Italy); 6 domestic cups (various)

Two highest points-per-games record in the history of English football. (2005 and 2006)

Now I know there are managers out there who have won a lot more titles (SAF for example!), but I dont know of any manager who has won in every country they have worked.

He did it at Porto, with no money and has of course, has spent a lot of money since, but money doesnt buy you success (Just ask Mancini or previous managers of RM\Barca etc etc)

Oh and I do mean the modern era, so dont go throwing Munoz, Paisley or Herrera at me.

We have our own Trap of course, but he is really old school now!

So, Mourinho is controversial, much misunderstood, accused of being not a particularly innovative or inventive manager and his teams do not play the eye catching football of say Barca, but he is certainly successful and he may, just may be returning to the Premiership very soon!

Where To

Second best.

His tutor was the best.

argosy2006

He refuses to come second, and when he does it hurts so bad to the point of him been a sore lose, but that for me = Born Winner,

Come to liverpool!!!!!

willmunny1990

Ferguson.

And then Mourinho.

daddydick

SAF hands down, unquestionably the best manager of this generation and in my opinion will go down as the greatest football manager of all time.

dreamers75

Mourinho.....but his style is short term only. His management technique would never work out long term. Players burn out too quickly under him.

Jimmy Iovine

You left out his most incredible statistic that was ended last year. Up until the Sporting Gijon match in April last year Mourinho had only ever lost 1 league game at home. He was on a 150 game unbeaten streak that stretched back 9 years to February 2002.

To me that is almost as impressive as winning those trophies. He somehow managed to create a fortress in 4 different clubs within the very first game. 4 different leagues and up against some of the best teams in the world and he was still unbeaten after 9 years.

Sgt Pepper 64

daddydick wrote: »

SAF hands down, unquestionably the best manager of this generation and in my opinion will go down as the greatest football manager of all time.

Isnt Mourinho already ahead compared what SAF had won at the same age?

I didnt think it through, but its possible MOurinho will beat the number of titles SAF wins when he reaches the same age or before!

SAF has the advantage of longer in the game!

cgpg5

Yes as he was consistently brilliant with 4 different clubs. Would personally love him back in the prem.

dreamers75

cgpg5 wrote: »

Yes as he was consistently brilliant with 4 different clubs. Would personally love him back in the prem.

reckon he is nailed on to be next united manager.

monkey9

willmunny1990 wrote: »

Ferguson.

And then Mourinho.

Bollix!!!! I agree with Willy!!!!!!

monkey9

dreamers75 wrote: »

Mourinho.....but his style is short term only. His management technique would never work out long term. Players burn out too quickly under him.

Completely agree!! He's never going to have a dynasty at a club the way Ferguson has!

cgpg5

dreamers75 wrote: »

reckon he is nailed on to be next united manager.

Sooner than that I mean. Wouldn't surprise me at all if he got City job next season

darced

This post has been deleted.

Fight_Night

dreamers75 wrote: »

Mourinho.....but his style is short term only. His management technique would never work out long term. Players burn out too quickly under him.

How do you figure that? genuinely curious btw not having a dig.

Moneymaker

Alex Ferguson and it's not even remotely close.

KeithAFC

Guardiola. Always prefer the Swan over the pig.

batistuta9

Jimmy Iovine wrote: »

You left out his most incredible statistic that was ended last year. Up until the Barca match in April last year Mourinho had only ever lost 1 league game at home. He was on a 150 game unbeaten streak that stretched back 9 years to February 2002.

To me that is almost as impressive as winning those trophies. He somehow managed to create a fortress in 4 different clubs within the very first game. 4 different leagues and up against some of the best teams in the world and he was still unbeaten after 9 years. That it took one of the greatest teams of all time to end it shows how amazing the record was.

are sporting gijon really one of the the greatest teams of all time?

gnfnrhead

It's Fergie for me, but only because he has been doing it longer. If Mourinho can keep his current form going for a while, he could pass him well before he reaches Fergie's age. The only real negative against him is he doesnt stay at a club for very long, for various reasons.

dreamers75

Fight_Night wrote: »

How do you figure that? genuinely curious btw not having a dig.

He fires the players up and creates a "them vs us" mentality. As with employees it will only work short term as the players/employees start to not give a fcuk and burn out. What happened at Chelsea will happen again as performances drop.

Its an actual style of management, dont agree with it but it has it uses in the short term.

Jimmy Iovine

batistuta9 wrote: »

are sporting gijon really one of the the greatest teams of all time?

**** I messed that one up. I thought it was Barca that ended the run. Doesn't take away from the achievement all the same.

batistuta9

dreamers75 wrote: »

He fires the players up and creates a "them vs us" mentality. As with employees it will only work short term as the players/employees start to not give a fcuk and burn out. What happened at Chelsea will happen again as performances drop.

Its an actual style of management, dont agree with it but it has it uses in the short term.

ferguson's being doing a "them v us" for how many years now?

Gbear

Not that the question is without merit but I think he gears his teams towards a quick-fix, win at any cost style that isn't great to watch, promotes poor sportsmanship and he doesn't give a **** what kind of state he leaves the club in.

Not the best for stability's sake.

Also, he's consistently won, but only if he outspends everyone else. Truth be told, with the kind of investment advantage he's had surely anything but domination would be a complete failure?

Still, as we've seen with City this season there's more to it than just spending the money. He absolutely puts it to good use.

I think beyond a certain point comparing managers is meaningless. The only metric you can compare is success because it's clearly defined. But who's to say that winning the league with a side worth billions is better than the job that, for example, Martinez has done with Levante on a shoestring?

Hank Scorpio

Best manager? Ferguson imo. Best tactician? That is clearly Mourinho. Won the uefa cup and European cup with porto, won back to back premierleague trophies and an Fa cup with Chelsea in his first two seasons, won 2 Serie A championchips and a treble including another Champions league in his second season, and now has seemingly won the league in Spain in his second full season beating the so called "best club of all time", still in the hunt for the CL too.

Warper

darced wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

Ever hear of Pep Guardiola ?

Mourinho will gaurantee you success within 2 years. Give him money, put up with his pettiness but he will bring you trophies. As a Barca fan i have to admit he is the best manager in the world today - no one can really argue against that. His record speaks for itself plus he is the only manager to have beaten this current Barca side. He is not the most likeable guy but he wins. I think the only people that think Ferguson is better are the usual biased posters on here.

cgpg5

Warper wrote: »

Ever hear of Pep Guardiola ?

Mourinho will gaurantee you success within 2 years. Give him money, put up with his pettiness but he will bring you trophies. As a Barca fan i have to admit he is the best manager in the world today - no one can really argue against that. His record speaks for itself plus he is the only manager to have beaten this current Barca side. He is not the most likeable guy but he wins. I think the only people that think Ferguson is better are the usual biased posters on here.

I don't know about others but I really like him, think he's good craic and entertaining tbh I think the prem isn't the same without him

opr

The bond he creates between himself and the players seems incredible. I mean the manlove towards him from Porto, Chelsea and Inter players after he left is amazing. I was only reading an interview with Joe Cole which he did last week and when asked the question straight away he answers Mourinho is the man he attributes as the best he has worked under. He loves creating this us against the world siege mentality which seems to really help develop bonds very quickly between himself and the players but also the bonds between the players.

This is worth a watch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pExkDO7xMGA

Opr

willmunny1990

Warper wrote: »

Ever hear of Pep Guardiola ?

Mourinho will gaurantee you success within 2 years. Give him money, put up with his pettiness but he will bring you trophies. As a Barca fan i have to admit he is the best manager in the world today - no one can really argue against that. His record speaks for itself plus he is the only manager to have beaten this current Barca side. He is not the most likeable guy but he wins. I think the only people that think Ferguson is better are the usual biased posters on here.

I'm a Chelsea fan and adore Mourinho but think Feguson is the best, for now anyway.

But I'm biased, somehow:pac:

Jimmy Iovine

Warper wrote: »

Ever hear of Pep Guardiola ?

Mourinho will gaurantee you success within 2 years. Give him money, put up with his pettiness but he will bring you trophies. As a Barca fan i have to admit he is the best manager in the world today - no one can really argue against that. His record speaks for itself plus he is the only manager to have beaten this current Barca side. He is not the most likeable guy but he wins. I think the only people that think Ferguson is better are the usual biased posters on here.

Would ya stop that ****e. Ferguson has one of the greatest records of all time and has been doing it with Aberdeen and United since Mourinho was still in his teens (and don't forget that Mourinho is nearly 50).

It doesn't take a blinkered United fan to realise and respect the longevity that Ferguson has had and the amazing amount of trophies that he has won over the years.

darced

This post has been deleted.

cgpg5

opr wrote: »

The bond he creates between himself and the players seems incredible. I mean the manlove towards him from Porto, Chelsea and Inter players after he left is incredible. I was only reading an interview with Joe Cole which he did last week and when asked the question straight away he answers Mourinho is the man he attributes as the best he has worked under. He loves creating this us against the world siege mentally which seems to really help develop bonds very quickly between himself and the players but also the bonds between the players.

This is worth a watch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pExkDO7xMGA

Opr

When he came back to face Chelsea for Inter I remember him standing in the tunnel shaking hands to the Chelsea players as they were coming out of the tunnel. You could see the height of respect that they still have for him. I'd say players love playing under him

batistuta9

Jimmy Iovine wrote: »

**** I messed that one up. I thought it was Barca that ended the run. Doesn't take away from the achievement all the same.

it does not. probably only to be repeated on football manager

Warper

Jimmy Iovine wrote: »

Would ya stop that ****e. Ferguson has one of the greatest records of all time and has been doing it with Aberdeen and United since Mourinho was still in his teens (and don't forget that Mourinho is nearly 50).

It doesn't take a blinkered United fan to realise and respect the longevity that Ferguson has had and the amazing amount of trophies that he has won over the years.

Touchy. The true test of a team is European football. Any team can dominate in their domestic league. Why has he won only 2 CL's in his time at Utd. Can he not adapt to different styles of play? He spend fortunes last summer trying to catch Barcelona and he is further away than last season. A top class manager but definitely not the best in the world today - his European record proves that.

argosy2006

cgpg5 wrote: »

When he came back to face Chelsea for Inter I remember him standing in the tunnel shaking hands to the Chelsea players as they were coming out of the tunnel. You could see the height of respect that they still have for him. I'd say players love playing under him

yo yo i'll let you finish, But beyonce has one of the best managers of all time !!!

Kanye West, signing out !

the realpigiron

It's likely that there will be a CL Final between R Madrid and Barca. I think Barca will win that. I also think Mourinho is the best football manager of the modern era.

Sgt Pepper 64

Gbear wrote: »

Not that the question is without merit but I think he gears his teams towards a quick-fix, win at any cost style that isn't great to watch, promotes poor sportsmanship and he doesn't give a **** what kind of state he leaves the club in.

Not the best for stability's sake.

Also, he's consistently won, but only if he outspends everyone else. Truth be told, with the kind of investment advantage he's had surely anything but domination would be a complete failure?

Still, as we've seen with City this season there's more to it than just spending the money. He absolutely puts it to good use.

I think beyond a certain point comparing managers is meaningless. The only metric you can compare is success because it's clearly defined. But who's to say that winning the league with a side worth billions is better than the job that, for example, Martinez has done with Levante on a shoestring?

Well the bulk of his chelsea team is still there, reached a CL final and went onto to win the double and just beat Barca, so I dont think that arguement stands up. He breathed new life into an old Inter side for a last hurrah

Jimmy Iovine

Warper wrote: »

Touchy. The true test of a team is European football. Any team can dominate in their domestic league. Why has he won only 2 CL's in his time at Utd. Can he not adapt to different styles of play? He spend fortunes last summer trying to catch Barcelona and he is further away than last season. A top class manager but definitely not the best in the world today - his European record proves that.

Ha I'm not even going to bother giving a response to that.

AgileMyth

Warper wrote: »

Touchy. The true test of a team is European football. Any team can dominate in their domestic league. Why has he won only 2 CL's in his time at Utd. Can he not adapt to different styles of play? He spend fortunes last summer trying to catch Barcelona and he is further away than last season. A top class manager but definitely not the best in the world today - his European record proves that.

Ferguson's European record is shocking to be honest, but the highlighted bit there is utter bull****.

Paully D

opr wrote: »

The bond he creates between himself and the players seems incredible. I mean the manlove towards him from Porto, Chelsea and Inter players after he left is amazing. I was only reading an interview with Joe Cole which he did last week and when asked the question straight away he answers Mourinho is the man he attributes as the best he has worked under. He loves creating this us against the world siege mentality which seems to really help develop bonds very quickly between himself and the players but also the bonds between the players.

This is worth a watch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pExkDO7xMGA

Opr

Might have been posted before but here's a great example of it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmiqUQFgOxE

argosy2006

the realpigiron wrote: »

It's likely that there will be a CL Final between R Madrid and Barca. I think Barca will win that. I also think Mourinho is the best football manager of the modern era.

After what i saw tonight not sure Barca would win,
Real seem to have figured them out, They did not give them a inch tonight, and took full advantage of Barca full backs going forward, By letting ronaldo fill that hole and receive ball,

It suits Barca to play teams who sit off them, As they have the craft to score regardless, But you can take advantage of Barca if you leave a out let on each wing and one through middle,

Break on them pick them off like Real did,

______Torres_____
Drogba_______sturridge__

In a 4-5-1 . Drogba and Sturridge out lets to build off of, Drogab left, Sturridge right

Its brave but Mourinho succeeded tonight,

Hank Scorpio

Hes clearly waiting to manage United, check his last comment in the video opr posted around the 25 min mark

mike65

Mourinho is certainly the most efficient manager of modern times - join club win title, leave. Join club win title, leave. Join club win title. Be interesting to see how long he can keep it up there being only so many mega rich clubs

Hank Scorpio

mike65 wrote: »

Be interesting to see how long he can keep it up there being only so many mega rich clubs

Porto Inter?

Mourinho made only three additions to the squad during the summer transfer window of 2008 in the form of Mancini,[14] Sulley Muntari,[15] and Ricardo Quaresma.[16] Under Mourinho's first season as Inter head coach, the Nerazzurri won an Italian Super Cup and a fourth consecutive title, being, however, also eliminated from the Champions League in the first knockout round for a third consecutive time, losing to Manchester United. In winning the league title for the fourth consecutive time, Inter joined Torino and Juventus as the only teams to do this and the first to accomplish this feat in the last 60 years.

Inter enjoyed more luck in the 2009–10 Champions League, managing to progress to the quarter-finals by eliminating Mourinho's former team Chelsea in a 3–1 aggregate win; this was the first time in three years that the Nerazzurri had passed the first knockout round. Inter then progressed to the semi-finals of the tournament by beating CSKA Moscow 2–0 on aggregate, winning both legs.[17] Inter managed to achieve a 3–1 win over incumbent champions Barcelona in the first leg of the semi-final. In the second leg, a resolute Inter lost 1–0 but progressed 3–2 on aggregate to their fifth European Cup/Champions League Final, with Bayern Munich as opponents. They won the match 2–0 thanks to two goals from Diego Milito, and were crowned champions of Europe.

LuckyLloyd

Absolutely. People can make it about money if they want, but he has his stamp on his squads within months, and gets the job done in a season or two every time. He is clearly a tactical genius, and he manages to get all sorts of players to buy into him and his view of how football should be played.

We'll never see a managerial run like this again imo.

dreamers75

LuckyLloyd wrote: »

Absolutely. People can make it about money if they want,

love that line Fenlon gets it too in ireland. At chelsea someone else was buying the players and Jose wasnt having any of it. The best managers always have the best players its kinda part in parcel.

Other side of that is the not so great managers spending more and winning nothing.

monkey9

Completely agree with Lloyd! At first, when Mourinho was doing his stuff at Chelsea, i put it down to the plastic effect!! But when you see what he's achieved over the past eight years or so, money or no money, it's amazing!!

The fact is, our great grandchildren will be reading about Jose Mourinho, the way we read about Herbert Chapman, Busby, Shankly, Paisley etc!!!

LuckyLloyd

dreamers75 wrote: »

love that line Fenlon gets it too in ireland. At chelsea someone else was buying the players and Jose wasnt having any of it. The best managers always have the best players its kinda part in parcel.

Other side of that is the not so great managers spending more and winning nothing.

Exactly. You still got to coach them, teach them a system, get them to bond and gel - and keep them going week in week out until the job is done.

Fenlon could have some more silverware in his locker in a couple of weeks too...

eagle eye

Rinus Michels is still the greatest ever for me. What he did is truly amazing. He brought Ajax from relegation candidates to European Cup champions, then brought the Dutch to a World Cup final and then won the Euros with a totally different team in 1988.

Mourinho is the only man that can surpass him imo, of those currently great in the game.

Mourinho's first success with Porto ranks him very highly for me. His success with Chelsea and Inter was backed by big money. Real is the same even though if he manages to do the league and CL double it will still be a great achievement considering how good Barca are.

Ferguson ranks highly due to his success at Aberdeen. United were the biggest, most well supported and richest team in England when he got there. His time in England has been incredible but again he always had huge money there, in comparison to most teams, up until very recently. He broke the transfer record in England on a couple of occasions. I'm not dismissing what he has achieved, I'm just doubting he could have done it at any other club in England due to money constraints.

What Brian Clough did with Nottingham Forest was amazing. What Shankley did with Liverpool is absolutely incredible too.

We live in a world these days where the GOAT in everything has to be somebody thats here and now. I still think that Michels holds that honour because he did it at club and national level. If Mourinho ever goes and manages Portugal and gets them to a World Cup final or wins the Euros then he takes that mantle imo. Doubt that Ferguson is going to do that at this late stage so he will never be the GOAT for me.

willmunny1990

eagle eye wrote: »

Rinus Michels is still the greatest ever for me. What he did is truly amazing. He brought Ajax from relegation candidates to European Cup champions, then brought the Dutch to a World Cup final and then won the Euros with a totally different team in 1988.

Mourinho is the only man that can surpass him imo, of those currently great in the game.

Mourinho's first success with Porto ranks him very highly for me. His success with Chelsea and Inter was backed by big money. Real is the same even though if he manages to do the league and CL double it will still be a great achievement considering how good Barca are.

Ferguson ranks highly due to his success at Aberdeen. United were the biggest, most well supported and richest team in England when he got there. His time in England has been incredible but again he always had huge money there, in comparison to most teams, up until very recently. He broke the transfer record in England on a couple of occasions. I'm not dismissing what he has achieved, I'm just doubting he could have done it at any other club in England due to money constraints.

What Brian Clough did with Nottingham Forest was amazing. What Shankley did with Liverpool is absolutely incredible too.

We live in a world these days where the GOAT in everything has to be somebody thats here and now. I still think that Michels holds that honour because he did it at club and national level. If Mourinho ever goes and manages Portugal and gets them to a World Cup final or wins the Euros then he takes that mantle imo. Doubt that Ferguson is going to do that at this late stage so he will never be the GOAT for me.

Huh? I'm a Chelsea fan and we've had unlimited money to spend since 2003, nearly 10 years ago.

very recently? nope, sorry.

eagle eye

willmunny1990 wrote: »

Huh? I'm a Chelsea fan and we've had unlimited money to spend since 2003, nearly 10 years ago.

very recently? nope, sorry.

Read it again.

monkey9

willmunny1990 wrote: »

Huh? I'm a Chelsea fan and we've had unlimited money to spend since 2003, nearly 10 years ago.

very recently? nope, sorry.

When and why did you start supporting Chelsea??