Jose Mourinho hits back at Antonio Cassano after the Roma boss was linked with Real Madrid
Jose Mourinho hits back at Antonio Cassano after the former striker claimed he ‘doesn’t care that much about football’ following reports the Roma boss has been linked with a return to Real Madrid
Jose Mourinho has hit back at criticism he received from retired striker Antonio Cassano.
Following reports linking Mourinho to a return to Real Madrid, Cassano said the legendary coach was just “cinema” and claimed he “doesn’t care much about football”.
Carlo Ancelotti, the current boss of Los Blancos, is under contract until the end of the 2023-24 season, when Mourinho’s deal in the Italian capital also expires.
Mourinho has now responded to Cassano’s attack, as he said at a press conference: ‘Everyone is free to have their preferences and express their criticism, but when you talk about others, as Antonio does, it’s different.
“Some of us work in football, he just wants to enjoy. Cassano played for Roma, for Inter and for Real Madrid.
Jose Mourinho has delivered a scathing analysis of Antonio Cassano’s career after the former striker criticized him as a ‘cinema coach’
The 40-year-old said Mourinho ‘doesn’t care that much about football’ amid links between Roma boss and Real Madrid
‘In Madrid he is only remembered for his coat. With Roma he won a Supercoppa Italiana without playing. At Inter he didn’t even manage to win the Lombardy Cup in a friendly match.’
Cassano signed for Real in 2006 but failed to make much of an impact at the club amid feuds with manager Fabio Capello.
The ‘Special One’ continued: ‘You know what I won with Inter, Real Madrid and Roma. He may have a problem with me, I don’t have a problem with him.
“I will only tell Cassano one thing: Careful Antonio, because you are 40 years old and I am 60, sometimes Marko Livaja types show up and then things get tough.”
Mourinho’s return to the Bernabeu will be an opportunity to improve on his first spell at the club, which saw only moderate success.
He managed Real Madrid from 2010-13, a period that coincided with the peak of Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona, winning just three trophies with the club.
However, the 60-year-old’s resume as a whole is impressive, as he boasts eight league titles and two Champions League victories.
Mourinho is also the only manager to have won a major European trophy with four different clubs. His win in the Europa Conference League with Roma added to the trophies he won with Porto, Inter Milan and Manchester United.
Mourinho won just three trophies in his first stint as Real boss as he took on Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona side at their peak
