Jose Mourinho finally shares the contract he signed that ‘nobody knows’ about in a Netflix documentary.
Jose Mourinho recently shared a surprising story about how he almost became Manchester United’s manager back in 2013 but ended up turning down the job. Even though he later managed United from 2016 to 2019, he revealed in his upcoming Netflix documentary that he initially said no to taking over after Sir Alex Ferguson retired.
After leaving Real Madrid in 2013, Mourinho returned to Chelsea for a second time. But in the Netflix series ‘Mourinho,’ he opened up for the first time about almost replacing Ferguson, before David Moyes got the role. He said, “When I left Real Madrid, I actually signed with Manchester United to take over after Sir Alex.”
Sir Alex Ferguson confirmed this in the documentary, explaining, “He was offered the job and seemed ready to accept. But then, later that evening, he called me in tears, saying he couldn’t do it because he had already promised Chelsea he would return. I understood, but I was disappointed.”
Mourinho said he felt honored to be offered the United job because of the club’s huge reputation. But more than anything, his deep love for Chelsea was what mattered most. He explained, “After Real Madrid, I needed to feel loved, and my connection to Chelsea was stronger than anything else.”
He called it a tough decision to miss out on managing United right after Ferguson but said he doesn’t regret it because he followed his heart. “When you act out of love, you can’t go wrong. I was going back home to Chelsea, but I also knew I had a big responsibility to live up to what I had done before.”
Mourinho went on to win his third Premier League title and a Carabao Cup with Chelsea in 2015, although his second spell ended later that year after some tough results. He finally got the United job in 2016, taking over from Louis van Gaal and winning the Carabao Cup and Europa League in his first season. He stayed until late 2019 before being replaced by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
After that, Mourinho managed Spurs, then Roma, Fenerbahce, Benfica, and this summer made a return to Real Madrid. ‘Mourinho’ the Netflix documentary premieres on Tuesday, August 11.