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Jose Mourinhoone of football’s most renowned and victorious managers, yet it’s often said that you can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs. Consider the top players who trained under him at Chelsea, Manchester United, and Real Madrid.

Despite all the medals and achievements, Mourinho’s tenures are equally marked by emotional turmoil. From public humiliations to private conflicts in the dressing room, his aggressive approach has left some of football’s most prominent figures visibly distressed, and in certain instances, physically reduced to tears.

Below are seven athletes who wept under Mourinho’s guidance.

Cristiano Ronaldo

Ronaldo is widely considered to have delivered the pinnacle of his footballing performance during Mourinho’s tenure.

He netted 120 goals in only 106 matches during the tenure of his Portuguese teammate and was the standout player as Real Madrid concluded Barcelona’s period of supremacy with a historic 100-point season in 2011-12.

However, there was consistently tension, especially during Mourinho’s short final season in the Spanish capital.

“Mourinho’s response caught me off guard,” Luka Modric mentioned in his autobiography ‘My Game’.

We were leading 2-0 in the Copa del Rey.

Ronaldo failed to track his opponent during a throw-in, which made Jose extremely angry at Cristiano. The two engaged in a prolonged argument on the field.

When we returned to the dressing room at halftime, I noticed Ronaldo was upset, close to crying. He remarked, ‘I’m giving my best, yet he’s still criticizing me.’

Mourinho entered and began to criticize the Portuguese for his role in the match.

The situation became so intense between them that only the players’ involvement stopped them from having a real fight.

Mesut Ozil

Ronaldo was not the only individual to experience the consequences of Mourinho’s outbursts while he was at the Bernabeu.

In his 2017 book ‘Gunning For Greatness,’ Ozil recounted the experience of facing criticism, being seen as weak in physical confrontations by the former Los Blancos manager.

“Now Mourinho was speaking very calmly,” Ozil remembered, describing how events reached a climax.

He’s no longer irritable and outspoken, but calm, which makes me even more angry. How can he stay composed like that while I’m about to lose control? I’m really furious. I wish I could throw my boots at his head. I want him to stop. To leave me alone once and for all.

‘Do you know what, Mesut?’ Mourinho says, louder now so that everyone can hear. ‘Weep if you want! Cry all you like! You’re such a child. Go take a shower. We don’t need you.’

I slowly rise, remove my shoes, take my towel, and quietly walk past the manager towards the showers, not even giving him a glance. He throws one last challenge at me. “You’re not Zinedine Zidane, you know. No! Never! You’re not even in the same league!”

I sense my throat tightening. His final words hit me like a blow to the heart. Mourinho is fully aware of what he’s saying. He knows how much I respect that player. He knows the Frenchman is the only footballer I genuinely admire.

Mohamed Salah

The Egyptian King of Liverpool had a brief and unremarkable period working under Mourinho at Chelsea. He made only 19 appearances during that time, scoring two goals and providing three assists.

“They were extremely unfortunate that the boss, Mourinho, didn’t show any mercy,” John Obi Mikel recalled.Obi One podcast.

If you failed in your duties, it made no difference who you were; he would confront you.

He once confronted Mohamed Salah at halftime and the boy was crying. We thought ‘Alright, he’ll let him return to the field,’ but instead, he ruined the kid and took him off. But that was just his mindset back then.

But would Mourinho do that now? I don’t think so.

READ: A highly impressive team of players that Jose Mourinho has had conflicts with

Angel Gomes

Gomes made history as Manchester United’s youngest player in the Premier League era when Mourinho gave him his first appearance at the age of 16 on the last day of the 2016-17 campaign.

He has built a solid career, playing for England and establishing himself in Ligue 1, but his initial time at Old Trafford was challenging.

“He didn’t believe I had performed up to par [in a reserve match] to deserve a spot in the first-team squad, and he made that very clear,” Gomes said.The Times.

Back then, I was wondering, ‘Why did he do that in front of everyone? Couldn’t he have taken me aside instead?’

Some of the players approached me and said, ‘He’s just trying to get a reaction from you, don’t let it bother you,’ but at that moment, I didn’t want to listen to anything.

I quickly went to my room and called my father and brother. They didn’t have much to say to me. I was almost in tears. I was very young.

It wasn’t until I grew older that I understood, with Mourinho, he constantly seeks to extract more from you. I believe his approach in front of everyone demonstrated that he respected me as a player. I likely needed that.

Benni McCarthy

A novel one, this.

McCarthy didn’t shed tears over Mourinho’s comments, but instead felt he had discovered something extraordinary after their initial meeting.

“I reached Porto in 2001 in poor condition. I netted on my first game and we emerged victorious, but then the manager (Octavio Machado) was dismissed,” the forward stated. The Athletic.

I couldn’t believe the man who brought me there was let go. A young guy took his place and said: ‘Benni, I know about you and I’ve seen your work.’

“‘I think you are a great player and I want you to be my guy.’ Then Jose Mourinho went on to tell me everything about me. He knew everything; he had watched my games at Celta.

How did he know this information? Jose told me that I could always talk to him, even if it was just to vent. I started crying, truly. I thought ‘Wow!’ This had never happened to me in Europe.

He was treating me like a son, and I thought, ‘I can’t let this person down; he’s given me the opportunity I desire.’ I felt like running through a brick wall for him.

Marco Materazzi

A bit of illumination for this one.

“When I had those final words with Materazzi, it felt like I was embracing every player,” Mourinho remembered, referring to the viral video of his heartfelt hug, shortly after the 2010 Champions League final win, when it was almost certain he would be leaving for Real Madrid.

“I told him ‘f**k you’ since he was leaving me with Benitez,” Materazzi later joked.

John Terry and the Chelsea team

Materazzi was not the only athlete who felt devastated by Mourinho’s exit.

Chelsea’s captain Terry and the rest of the Blues team were deeply affected by the news of the iconic manager’s dismissal from Stamford Bridge in 2007.

“We were all crying,” Terry saidSky Sports.

It was one of those instances where murmurs were circulating, our performance wasn’t up to par, and we weren’t faring well in the league, when he arrived and declared: “That’s it, I’ve been fired.” He went from person to person, offering hugs and affection.

Adults weeping uncontrollably. We were wondering: ‘What’s next for us?’ We had a mentor-like figure leading the way.

We actually talked to the board and said: ‘Listen, we want him to stay, can we avoid bringing him back? It’s an impulsive decision, he’s the best we’ve collaborated with.’

Regrettably, they had already reached their conclusion. However, there were indeed fully grown men weeping uncontrollably.

He was extremely strict with the group, and he often pushed us to our maximum capabilities. It’s only after you’ve finished performing that you understand the reasons behind his actions.

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