Jose Mourinho 'cried after Manchester United snub'

By Michael Penkman, ReporterPublished: 27 September 2013 3:04 AM

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho broke down in tears after learning that he had been passed over for the Manchester United job, Spanish journalist Diego Torres writes in his new book.

Spanish journalist Diego Torres has claimed that Jose Mourinho cried upon learning that he had been snubbed for the Manchester United job.

The Portuguese coach, who at the time was on his way out of Real Madrid, had long been rumoured to be a contender to replace Sir Alex Ferguson once he eventually retired.

However, David Moyes got the job on the recommendation of the legendary Scot, something which El Pais writer Torres says caused Mourinho "terrible disbelief".

"Mourinho... thought that Ferguson was, besides his ally, also his friend and godfather," he wrote in his new book Prepare to Lose: the Mourinho Era. "He was convinced that they were tied by a relationship of genuine trust.

"He thought that his fabulous collection of titles constituted an 'endorsement' unreachable to any other contenders. When he knew that Ferguson had chosen Moyes, the Everton coach, he was struck by a terrible disbelief: 'Moyes hadn't won absolutely anything!'

"Mourinho wouldn't stop calling [his sports agency Gestifute]. His 'interlocutors' had heard him sob loudly and they were spreading the word. The most feared man in the company was crushed."

Mourinho returned as manager of Chelsea in June.