Of Jose and Conte: Never Forget

Even as a United fan in 2006, I couldn't look a Chelsea fan in his face at the time and say your manager is not a world class manager. Not after he had won everything on offer at Porto including the Europa and Champions league. It was my first time as a United fan since 1999 to feel really uncomfortable about the prospect of an emerging challenger. Leeds, Blackburn, Newcastle, later Arsenal and least of all Liverpool where all afraid of the United fire. But a certain loquacious and cantankerous dude had emerged on the block, dubbing himself "the Special One." Wenger and Benitez were most critical and envious of his success and personality. He destroyed the United - Arsenal duopoly, from which Arsenal never really recovered and broke many records held by United, in particular winning with a record 95 points.

He also nearly replicated the unbeaten record recently set by Arsenal just a year earlier. "Who is Jose Mourinho?" was pretty much a question and an answer in the lips of managers, footballers and fandoms across Europe's elite clubs. Let me make this clear about what would have been a more worthy unbeaten record. Chelsea was winning games like they were match-fixing and were coasting with a force that was only known to come from United and Arsenal in their hey days.

I remember that in 2005, they were unlucky to lose only one game in the whole season! If it was a game of boxing, Chelsea would probably have won that game since City won against the run of play. Chances were created, saves were made, woodwork was hit but it was City that luckily scored a lone goal through Anelka's penalty. In fact, it was even a controversial decision by the distinguished referee Howard Webb. The offender, Paulo Ferreira claimed that he brought down Anelka (who himself would later move to Chelsea) right before the 18 yard box. Opinion remains divided after the post match review. That was the second goal they were conceding at that time in the season, each at home and away. That was the awe that Mourinho built around Chelsea FC, a rising mid-table team with only one league glory (won in the second half of the 20th century) to show for their efforts since 1905. In the process, he built an emerging power centre in London  and a duopoly with United for much of the period 2005 to 2012. The next, Chelsea won the league again to show that it wasn't due to chance; a domestic double and a second UCL champions league semifinal. Clearly, they weren't "Leicestering, if you catch my drift.

His exploits in Inter is already common knowledge and need not be repeated here. Now fast forward to his stint at Real Madrid. At Madrid, he was brought to stop the virtually unstoppable domestic and European menace of their fierce rivals, Barcelona. To put this in context, the blaugrana boys had become nearly  invincible since 2005 and this reached a crescendo in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 under Pep Guardiola. The duo of Ramos and Pellegrini had fought hard, won a few titles but were generally underwhelming of Real Madrid's standard, who were then now playing in the Europa as a matter of routine. Almost all the LFP awards went to Barca players, from Ronaldinho to Messi to Xavi etc. In a nutshell, it was a massive task that tested his managerial skills and stretched it to its limits. Mourinho won the Copa del Rey and later delivered in his second season, winning the league and breaking a number of records in the process: 100 points in a single season, 121 goals scored, a goal difference of +89, 16 away wins, and 32 overall wins. It has taken Madrid this month since Mourinho to win that same trophy again, but the records are a different kettle of fish. He won other domestic trophies but failed to win the Champions league. He however assembled the core of the present day Real Madrid team that eventually won the trophy twice after his exit.

Mourinho returned to Chelsea at a time when Man City were menacing all the teams - big and small. They had replicated the Chelsea model: spending big and attracting the best players and managers. United was the only resilient force that offered what looked like a brief duopoly between the period, 2011 and 2014, when the premier league trophy was resident in Manchester and alternated like a simple pendulum between the two Manchester clubs. At the time too, Brendan Rogers was doing a fine job at Liverpool but never a real title contender until his last season. Chelsea retained the third spot but in Mou's second season, he won the league title and the league cup. It was some sort of a reminder that could be subtitled, NEVER FORGET, "I am still the Special One." Sadly, the last season of Mou's second spell at Chelsea was a departure from the norm. His character flaw that affected his management model at Real Madrid reappeared and exacerbated his poor performance. On his return, he never really forgave Wenger and made remarks that came off to Arsenal fans, a club he has constantly humiliated, as uncomplimentary and an exhibition of pride. To their elation, Mourinho was sacked by a club he loved passionately. Chelsea was his pet project, where he wanted to re-enact his own version of the Fergie Era. This was not to be.

Only last year, admist media reports of Real Madrid and Manchester United interest, he accepted another major challenge at United. A huge problem had been created by the departure of their legendary manager and the emergence his less illustrious Scottish cousin, Moyes, as his (rather unworthy) successor. Till this present day, Moyes is yet to recover from his attempt to fill Fergie's vacant shoes. Since then, he has been on a downward spiral dragging every club along his slippery path to ignominy. Since Moyes touched United, the club has never been the same, thereby necessitating a turbulent transition. Nonetheless, Mourinho has delivered hope and won secondary trophies in the league and has moved to an inch of a European glory in his first season. Due to some inexplicable reasons, you will find a few people rating Mourinho below Conte.

Never forget too that Conte is a fantastic manager steadily toeing the path of greatness. Prior to his appointment at Chelsea, Conte had brought Juventus within  inches of Europa league glory in 2014, when Juve reached the semi-finals of the competition, before his brief stint as Italy manager. His three consecutive Serie A titles with the Old Lady in the years 2012, 2013 and 2014 as well as his current premier league title with Chelsea, this season, are notable achievements. He has also won two Supercoppa Italiana in 2012 and 2013 and is likely to beat Arsenal silly to win the 2017 English FA Cup. As for the man he is being compared to, this is not the place to rehash Mourinho's CV for comparison. Every football lover should have an insight in this regard.

In sum, despite Conte's impressive CV, it is inconceivable that he would be rated above Mourinho. Never forget that Mourinho is not in the class of winning double as he has several doubles to his name. He is in the that special club of "European treble winners." Never forget that he belongs to that exclusive "club of 5 managers" to have won the Champions league with two different teams or in the exclusive "club of 5 managers" to have won league titles in at least four different countries. Such comparisons can, of course, only happen in Nigeria, where history is a taboo and people have collective and/or selective amnesia and live only in the present.