Swipe at Rafa and Liverpool doesn’t paint the full picture

Jose Mourinho’s tenure in the Premier League was quite literally a “special one” – it was littered with trophies and the sort of controversy that makes him the greatest manager in the world. So perhaps his swipe at Rafael Benitez offers little more than another bold brush stroke into the complex portrayal of the new Real Madrid manager.

It is his belief that the task which faces Roy Hodgson is unenviable – working with a team that has been on a progressive decline since that night in Istanbul in 2005. Whilst his comments offer some truth, it could also be conceived that it is merely a petty dig at a Hodgson’s predecessor who he never saw eye to eye with in his time at Stamford Bridge.

Mourinho said: “It is very difficult work for Roy to do it with Liverpool as, over the last years, they have been getting worse, worse and worse. The Liverpool of 2004 was better than the Liverpool of 2005, 2005 was better than 2006 and 2006 better than 2007.”

And whilst I respect Mourinho, it is the sort of notion that may tempt the Spaniard to draw up another list of facts. They would certainly make for interesting reading as Liverpool have ‘in fact’ improved every season until his last with the club in terms of Premier League points as well as reaching two Champions League finals.

Perhaps such bitterness stems from that Luis Garcia goal which never was, denying Mourinho the chance to lay his hands upon something which eluded him at Chelsea; the Champions League. It is feasible that as a result of this the Bernebeu boss feels it necessary to undermine Benitez as he takes the reigns up at Inter.

Often his antics in England were highly amusing; his quips meant that press conferences were a far cry from the norm but unfortunately his latest views are tainted with a touch of the unnecessary – especially when he alluded to the fact that should Benitez win the Intercontinental Cup then “he will only have won two games to my 13. Therefore it will be my trophy and not his”.

As both managers enter new eras with their respective clubs, such futile remarks will do nothing to enhance Jose’s reputation. Everyone knows that Inter Milan have enjoyed their best years under his guidance and that he is a tough act to follow so maybe he would be wise to focus on the mammoth task that now faces him – wrestling the La Liga title off rivals Barcelona.

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