Jose Mourinho set for Chelsea reunion having started Benfica reign with familiar firestorm

Portuguese coach returns to Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night for Champions League clash against former club

Jose Mourinho has taken seven points from a possible nine in his first three games in charge of Benfica. EPA

It was only two games into Jose Mourinho's return to Portuguese football and the new manager of Benfica was already hurtling into trademark rant mode.

His team had just been denied all three points at home to winless Rio Ave after a wonderful curling finish from Andre Luiz in added time, which had come just five minutes after Georgiy Sudakov appeared to have earned Benfica victory.

Mourinho, who replaced the sacked Bruno Lage at the club where he spent a brief 11-game spell in charge at the very beginning of his coaching career 25 years ago, did not take the final result well.

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Few escaped Mourinho's wrath after the match. His players for the late leveller: “We scored a goal; you can't concede a goal when you're winning 1-0 … It's naive, it shows a lack of overall experience and a lack of understanding of the game.”

The opposition for their negative tactics: “There are players who spend the whole game delaying … Rio Ave is responsible for the emotional strategy they used, stopping the game and slowing it down.”

The referee for not dealing with the time-wasting: "[He] is responsible, and I said to him at half-time: why don't you give a yellow card to a goalkeeper in the 15th or 20th minute?”

And finally, modern football in general for ruling out a Benfica goal: “If this is today's football, if a goal is disallowed because a toe was stepped on or a shirt was pulled, I don't like today's football.”

It was in stark contrast to his unveiling at Benfica's training centre on the outskirts of Lisbson, where he assured all present that this would be a “more altruistic, less self-centred” Mourinho who thinks “less about myself and more about the joy I can give to others.”

Still, Mourinho's start at Benfica has generally been a positive one, coming a little over three weeks since being sacked by Turkish club Fenerbahce following their Uefa Champions League play-offs exit – ironically at the hands of Benfica.

He started off with a 3-0 win over bottom club AVS, followed by the Rio Ave draw and finally Friday's 2-1 victory at Gil Vicente, leaving Benfica third in the table, one point behind leaders Porto.

It was at Porto that Mourinho established himself as one of the world's leading coaches, guiding the club to two league titles, one Uefa Cup and – most incredible of all for a club of that size – the Champions League crown.

It was that achievement in 2004 – when Mourinho imprinted himself into English football minds by charging down the Old Trafford touchline to celebrate Costinha's late leveller, a goal that secured a quarter-final win over Manchester United – that led to him being appointed manager of Chelsea.

“Why not celebrate this way?” he wrote in his book, Mourinho. “This is surely an iconic picture in my career. A 50-metre sprint at Old Trafford … The next day I had two big English clubs knocking on my door.”

One of those was Chelsea, where he would go to win seven major trophies, including three Premier League titles, over two spells in West London. And where he returns on Tuesday night with Benfica in the Champions League.

Both his Chelsea reigns (2004-2007 and 2013-2015) followed similar paths; trophies and titles at the start followed by the sack – the first following a series of disagreements with then-owner Roman Abramovich, the second due to what the club’s technical director, Michael Emenalo, described as a “palpable discord with the players”.

Despite the issues in 2015, Mourinho's connection with his former players was vital to Chelsea's success. Frank Lampard and John Terry are two bona fide Chelsea legends and key figures during his spells in charge, both of whom hold Mourinho in the highest regard.

“The detail he and others brought to Chelsea was so forward-thinking at the time,” said Lampard in 2019 interview with the BBC's Football Focus. “Every training session had immense detail and was planned and structured so that you'd know what you were doing from the start.”

“He was the best manager, and the best coach as well. He did everything,” former Blues captain Terry said on Sky Sports in 2017. “He 100 per cent changed the way I thought about football. In his first session, the lads came in and we thought: 'Wow, that's a proper session'.”

His relationship with Chelsea supporters might be considered slightly more complex. When returning to Stamford Bridge as Manchester United manager in 2017, Mourinho was taunted by home fans with chants of “Judas” and “you’re not special any more”, in reference to his infamous “I am the special one” quote made at his first unveiling as Blues manager.

In response, the 62-year-old Portuguese would hold up three fingers representing the three Premier League titles he won for the club. “The fans can call me what they want,” said Mourinho after the 1-0 FA Cup quarter-final defeat.

“Until the moment [Chelsea] have a manager that wins four Premier Leagues for them, I’m the number one. For this moment, ‘Judas’ is number one.”

How he is received on Tuesday night will be interesting, although the fact he will not be coaching a Premier League rival should ensure a warm welcome, before the first whistle is blown at least.

“If the fans are great to me, then great. If they are not, that's fine and no problem but I am happy to be back,” said Mourinho, while current Blues coach Enzo Maresca insisted: “It will be a privilege to face Jose.”

Both sides lost their opening Champions League games – Chelsea away to Bayern Munich, Benfica at home to Qarabag – and will be looking to kick-start their respective campaigns.

But never one to shirk the spotlight, it will be Mourinho taking centre stage, relishing the chance to make a mark with his new club and remind his old one of special days gone by.