Las 5 mayores revelaciones del documental de Mourinho en Netflix rumbo al Mundial 2026

The self-anointed ‘Special One’ has returned to the big time. Not only is Jose Mourinho just beginning his second spell in charge of Real Madrid, but he is also the subject of a new Netflix documentary that offers fascinating insight into his trophy-laden managerial career, which now spans over 26 years.

Mourinho has also enjoyed two stints at Chelsea and Benfica, respectively, and served as the main man in the dugout at Porto, Inter, Manchester United, Tottenham, Roma, and Fenerbahce, winning eight league titles and two Champions Leagues. As one of the most decorated coaches of all time – and one of the most charismatic – Mourinho is an icon who continues to attract eyes from all over the world at the age of 63.

As any fan of Mourinho would expect, there are plenty of intriguing revelations included across the three episodes, filmed over two-and-half years by director Joel Pearlman and produced by Ventureland, the company behind the acclaimed David Beckham documentary that was also released on Netflix in 2023.

Below, runs through the five biggest bombshells from ‘Mourinho’, starting with the story behind his infamous fallout with a Madrid hero…

Casillas an example of ‘spoilt’ Real culture

Mourinho’s first adventure in the Spanish capital was a success in a lot of ways: he transformed Real Madrid back into a fiercely competitive outfit that not only went toe to toe with Pep Guardiola’s all-conquering Barcelona, but toppled them, overseeing a Copa del Rey final win over their arch rivals in his debut season before delivering the Liga crown in 2011-12 with a record haul of 100 points.

However, he failed to take Real to a Champions League final, and they had little choice but to let Mourinho go after a hugely disappointing, trophy-less campaign in 2012-13, during which he seemingly lost the dressing room over his treatment of Iker Casillas.

The legendary goalkeeper, who amassed 752 appearances in 25 years at the Bernabeu, was relegated to the bench amid reports that Mourinho was angered by his relationship with fellow Spain internationals at Barcelona. “The relationship Jose and I had was very cold,” Casillas says in the documentary. “In those years, I really think it was taken to a limit where, in the end, the rope broke.”

Ex-Real midfielder Sami Khedira went on to claim that the rift served to turn the squad’s biggest stars against Mourinho, adding: “The locker room was a nightmare, honestly. After that, the relationship between Jose and many, many players was broken – like Cristiano [Ronaldo] and the Spanish guys, Casillas, Sergio Ramos. And those players were super, super important for the atmosphere”

Mourinho, though, has no regrets over how he handled the situation, and feels that Casillas’ attitude spoke volumes about the sense of entitlement running through the team. “The first three times that I spoke to Casillas, the captain, the first thing he told me was, ‘I want to ask for more holidays for the national team players’,” he said. “The second time he spoke to me was, ‘I would like to ask you to put the training sessions one hour later because at the time you want the training sessions, there is a lot of traffic in Madrid’. The third time he comes to speak with me was, ‘We don’t want to go to [the] hotel. We prefer just to meet on matchday and go direct to the stadium to play’. And in a short period of time, I realised they’re spoilt.”

Quizzed on Casillas’ fraternizing with Barcelona players, Mourinho replied in typically blunt fashion: “There are things that I don’t accept and I will never accept and when somebody doesn’t respect me, it’s a problem. I say, this is Barcelona, Real Madrid. When you go to the national team, then you can kiss the guy, but not now. This is war.”

Signing to succeed Sir Alex in 2013

David Moyes was not the right man to take the mantle from Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United; that’s a fact. The Red Devils plummeted to seventh in the Premier League on Moyes’ watch, after winning the 2012-13 title, and he was unceremoniously booted out of the dugout after just ten months.

The consensus is that his miserable tenure set the tone for the next 12 years, which has seen United become also-rans on both domestic and European fronts. But things could have been different had they landed their first-choice replacement for Ferguson.

“When I left Real Madrid, I signed to go to Manchester United after Sir Alex,” Mourinho revealed during the Netflix series. Ferguson then said after confirming United’s offer to the Portuguese: “As far as I was concerned, he was accepting. And then, within hours, it changed.”

However, Mourinho ultimately performed an emotional U-turn. Ferguson added: “One night, he phoned me and he was crying and he says: ‘Alex, I can’t take it. I’ve given my word to Chelsea and I’m not going to break my word.’

“The reason he gave to me, I could understand, but I was disappointed.”

The “incredible appeal” of the United job was not lost on Mourinho, and he said he was “flattered” to be chosen as Ferguson’s successor, but they couldn’t give him what he craved most at that time. “One thing is love for football, another thing is love for a certain club,” he said. “I think this is more powerful than love for football and fundamentally, after Real Madrid, I needed to feel that I’m loved. For me to lose the chance to be the coach to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson was dramatic, but I don’t regret [it] because it was a decision that I made with my heart.”

Mourinho was initially vindicated after winning his third Premier League title with Chelsea in 2014-15, only to be dismissed early the following campaign, which paved the way for another United swoop. After replacing Louis van Gaal in May 2016, Mourinho led them to a Europa League and Carabao Cup double, but was sacked in December 2018 after the club’s worst start to a top-flight season since 1990-91.

The crucial difference is that he arrived at Old Trafford at a time of instability instead of harmony. Had it been the other way around, the Red Devils may well have continued fighting for the biggest prizes year in, year out.

Obtaining Bolton training footage at Chelsea

“El Mundial 2026 transforma la estrategia de los grandes clubes. Cada decisión de plantilla pesa más que nunca en el calendario.”— Análisis rumbo al Mundial 2026

Mourinho’s relationship with Chelsea began in 2004, when he moved to Stamford Bridge on the back of leading Porto to Champions League glory. The Blues went on to win their first league title in 50 years, and repeated the trick in 2005-06, with Mourinho also masterminding an FA Cup triumph and two League Cup wins before his dismissal in September 2007.

Chelsea’s success was built on a rock solid defensive foundation as the players bought into Mourinho’s pragmatic, aggressive tactics, but it has now been revealed that video analysis also played a vital role in the club’s rapid rise. “That was the breakthrough in terms of match analysis. Not a lot of people were doing it to the extent that we were doing it at the time,” said Andre Villas-Boas, who led that department for Mourinho, and would later take in spells as Chelsea and Spurs head coach himself. “It was the old times of the DVD players and sometimes the DVD player didn’t work, and Jose used to destroy the projector or the DVD player!”

Blues captain John Terry was left in shock when footage of a Bolton training session was shown in one particular team meeting as Mourinho prepared to do battle with Sam Allardyce. “Big Sam is saying: ‘Hit [William] Gallas, he’s not very good in the air’. He’s spitting and stuff like that on the mic,” said Terry. “And it was just like – wow, who gets footage from someone’s training ground? I am actually still not sure where he got the footage from!”

Such methods have come under intense scrutiny in recent times because of the Southampton ‘Spygate’ scandal, but the Chelsea squad always had full trust in Mourinho’s process. Terry once even took a painkilling injection to re-join training, in response to being ignored by Mourinho when reporting an injury. “For him, I would give everything. I would leave that pitch in a coffin for him,” Terry said with a completely straight face.

Sabbatical dig at Guardiola

The rivalry between Mourinho and Guardiola in Spain brought endless drama. There was often even more focus on their touchline and press conference battles than the action on the pitch, and the tension boiled over on more than one occasion.

Guardiola sarcastically described his managerial counterpart as “the f*cking chief” in 2011, while Mourinho placed the ex-Barca boss in a new category of coaches “who criticises the referee when he makes correct decisions”, and suggested he should be “ashamed” of his two Champions League wins at Camp Nou after benefitting from “scandalous” officiating.

Bitterness made way for respect when they reunited in the Premier League, but Mourinho couldn’t resist a subtle jibe at his old foe in the documentary. Guardiola is currently on sabbatical, having called time on his 10-year reign at Manchester City in May, and also took a lengthy break from the game after leaving Barca in 2012.

“Some guys, they need a sabbatical – which is something that I hate. I hate that word,” Mourinho says. “For me, sabbatical means weakness. Don’t speak with me about sabbaticals. I never need a rest. I will have a rest when he (Mourinho points to the sky) decides to say: ‘Come up’.”

While Guardiola admitted he “didn’t have the energy” to continue at City, Mourinho claims he feels “incomplete” whenever he’s away from the dugout. “I cannot even imagine when I am going to stop my life in football,” he continued. “I say 10 more years, but maybe more than 10. It’s fun. It was, it is and will always be fun. I want to win more titles. I want to win new titles. I want to repeat titles.

“I want to do it in places where I have never been. I want to do it in places where I did before. My world is to walk in a football stadium with 50,000 or 90,000 [fans]. I had 100,000. That is my world. Without football, there is not something complete in me. But I don’t think it is an obsession. I don’t feel it as an obsession. It is just when you reach a certain level, you want to stay there forever.”

Interestingly, Guardiola agreed to contribute to the documentary, but only on the condition that Mourinho ask him personally. Of course, that never happened. ‘Mourinho’ director Pearlman told ESPN of that dynamic: “It says everything about both characters to me and it was perfect.”

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