LISBON (ITALPRESS) – José Mourinho is still in the spotlight, and not only for his footballing exploits. Indeed, the comeback draw his Benfica side achieved last night against Porto left a lasting impression. The Special One, enraged and sent off at the end of the match for an uncalled penalty, lashed out violently at Lucho Gonzalez, assistant to Francesco Farioli, the Italian coach of Porto.
“The referee says he sent me off because I kicked a ball toward the Porto bench, but that’s false,” the former Inter and Roma manager said in an initial version of events. “I don’t know if it was three, four, or five balls, but I kicked them toward the stands to celebrate the goal we had just scored and therefore give a ball to a lucky fan,” Mourinho initially stated. “I know I’m not very good technically, but I told the fans,” Mourinho added at the press conference. “A member of the Porto bench, who was also sent off, called me a traitor. I’d like to ask him: ‘Traitor in relation to what?’. I coached at Porto, Chelsea, Inter… and I always gave my all. That’s called professionalism.” Mourinho then mentioned the name of the former Marseille midfielder: “Lucho (Gonzalez, ed.) called me a traitor. Not once, but 20, 30, 50 times. A traitor to whom? When he left for Marseille, was he a traitor? He could have insulted me in other ways. I was disappointed because he’s a coach like me,” he concluded.
– photo IPA Agency –
(ITALPRESS).
