Mourinho's latest touchline drama: 'The Special One' goes full conspiracy mode after Madrid defeat
José Mourinho returns to his theatrical best with claims of referee bias in Benfica's Champions League loss to Real Madrid at the Estádio da Luz.
The Special One was back to his old tricks as Benfica fell to Real Madrid, with José Mourinho bringing out his infamous ‘papelitos’ (little papers) in the mixed zone after being sent to the stands.
Red card revelations
Mourinho, never one to go quietly into the night, claimed his dismissal came after pointing out what he believes is preferential treatment for certain players. The Portuguese manager suggested the referee had a list of players who couldn’t be booked, including Tchouaméni and Huijsen.
“I’ve got 1,400 games with my bum on the bench,” Mourinho declared in typical fashion, insisting he knows exactly how these things work despite acknowledging Madrid deserved their victory.
The former Chelsea and Spurs boss now faces a touchline ban for the return leg at the Bernabéu, where he’ll be unable to communicate with his team or enter the dressing room – though he did find a silver lining in avoiding pre-match press conference duties.
Vini Jr drama
Much of Mourinho’s post-match chat centered around Vinicius Jr’s goal celebration, which apparently riled up the 60,000 Benfica supporters at the Estádio da Luz.
While careful not to directly accuse anyone of lying, Mourinho revealed both Vinicius and Benfica’s Prestianni gave contradicting accounts of what happened. He questioned why the Brazilian couldn’t celebrate “like Eusebio, Pelé or Di Stéfano” instead of antagonizing the crowd.
“After scoring a goal that only he or Mbappé could score, he should be carried on his teammates’ shoulders rather than getting involved with 60,000 people in this stadium,” Mourinho suggested.
Return leg prospects
Despite the defeat and impending touchline ban, Mourinho remains cautiously optimistic about Benfica’s chances in Madrid:
“It will be a very difficult mission. We have a possibility,” he admitted, before adding they would need to play a great match while hoping Madrid have an off day.
In true Mourinho style, when asked if Vinicius has a problem with his behavior, he dodged the question with the finesse of a seasoned politician: “I don’t know. You probably know better than me. I prefer to focus on the incredible goal he scored.”