Jose Mourinho not as arrogant as the media portrays, says former Chelsea defender

What's the story?

Jose Mourinho, who is known for his antics on and off the field, has been extolled by his former Chelsea pupil, Alex, as being a nice guy and not an arrogant person that the media shows him to be, in an interview with Goal.

Alex, who retired from professional football in 2016, has spent just three months working under the Portuguese manager but said that during those three months, his perception about the manager changed completely and he strongly believes that he can bring the best out of his players.

In case you didn't know...

Jose Mourinho came into limelight when he led a modest Porto side all the way in the 2003-04 UEFA Champions League. He joined Chelsea next season and led The Blues to their first league title in 50 years.

The 56-year old has won the league titles in four different countries in his illustrious career, including multiple triumphs in Portugal, England, and Italy.

He has been called arrogant by the media from the very beginnings, but he prefers to be called the 'Special One', as he himself told the media after arriving at the Stamford Bridge. He Said: (Via BBC)

"Please don't call me arrogant, but I'm European champion and I think I'm a special one."

The heart of the matter...

Alex, the Brazilian centre-back, who spent most of his career with Chelsea, had the privilege of playing with Mourinho for just three months, but he says the manager was very kind and helpful to during that time.

He also mentions that the two-time Champions League winning coach is completely different from how the media portrays him. He told Goal:

"I was surprised with Mourinho, I had that impression of him as a super arrogant person with a massive ego, because of what we saw in the media, but I ended up seeing another thing."

Though he also said that the former Manchester United coach could be very strict on some players. He continued:

"Sometimes he can hurt, he is very severe with some players..."

"Mourinho used to put a lot of pressure on Shevchenko and some players don't work well with this, but for me, he is fantastic as a person and as a coach."

What's next?

Jose Mourinho remains tight-lipped about his future but has continued to be involved with football off the pitch.