Jose Mourinho is the type of manager players love to play for

It wasn’t just the players who loved Jose Mourinho at Inter Milan, everyone at the club did. I was told that the door was always open for his return

Jose Mourinho creates a team spirit at his clubs that few manager can match, says Diego Forlan. Action Images via Reuters / Andrew Couldridge

I have never been at a club where the players talked so much about a previous manager as they did about Jose Mourinho at Inter Milan.

I arrived only a year after he had left but the club worked through four managers in little over a year. Mourinho had left Inter as the treble winners: champions of Europe and Italy’s league and cup, but none of his predecessors came close to matching his achievements.

It was not just the players who loved him, everyone at the club did. I was told that the door was always open for his return.

For so many players to speak so well about a manager is a surprise but players want to work for Mourinho. Not only does he win trophies players feel he supports them, protects them from pressure and shields them from criticism by taking it on himself. He defends his players publicly, even if he speaks differently to them in private. It is not a problem that he has a big personality – that can be good taking attention away from the players.

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He has done this at every club he has been at but he does it by demanding complete control – and a little patience – and that suits some clubs better than others.

At Porto, he got control by being so dominant that they won the European Cup. At Chelsea, they had money and ambition and money but they were not one of the biggest in England.

He was allowed to build a team and lead them to a first league title in 50 years. Because he did that, he had the same level of control he had at Porto and moulded the club the way he wanted as it had not previously been synonymous with any style.

At Inter, he again delivered success. With Serie A slipping behind the English and Spanish leagues, Inter needed him more than he needed them. He had a lot of support and he was very successful.

He hit problems at Real Madrid. He had passed the test to be their manager by knocking Barcelona (despite Inter barely having the ball), then the best team in the world, out of the Uefa Champions League and winning the competition, in the Bernabeu.

He got some criticism for the defensive way in which his Inter team played against Barca, but what else could he do? Barca had better players but Mourinho got the result. He had no temptation to be remembered like the Brazil team of 1982, a beautiful side that did not win anything.

He wants to win and that is what he does everywhere he goes. He usually does it with his teams playing attractive football, too.

I do not think he was cut out to manage Real Madrid. I know he did well – winning the league, Spanish Cup and improved them in Europe – and all at a time when Barca was the best team in the world.

But Spanish clubs are like teams in South America, it is the club presidents who are famous. In England, the club presidents do not seek publicity or have a high profile. In Spain, they like to be considered the most important person at the club.

The fans also have more power because the president listens to them. He wants to stay popular but fans can change their opinions very quickly. They can change their minds after a few games but does a manager deserve to be sacked when he does not win a few games? Every manager goes through bad times.

In England, the media are the ones who criticise most and Mourinho is perfect for England because he can go into battle with outsiders from the press rather than his own president or fans.

So he creates a war in which the fans and his club, and especially his players, are happy to support him. It is like a big show and it is entertaining, with him at the front taking all the criticism and everyone behind him, supporting him. It is a very powerful model for a football club but I appreciate everyone outside that club may not like the manager. People seem to love or hate Mourinho, but players tend to love him.

I also like that he does things his way. He has confidence in his own ability and says “You hired me!” if his tactics are questioned.

When his Madrid teams were aggressive against Barca, they had to be, because Barca were better. He used any means within the rules to win the games and unsettle his opponents. He did not always win, but he still beat Barca in the 2011 Spanish Cup final.

He was criticised for the style of football in Madrid but look what happened when he tried to attack Barca in 2010. Madrid lost 5-0. The result is most important.

The Madrid changing room is difficult for any manager, even Mourinho. Some of his players saw him supporting them, some were in conflict with him because he did things his way, not the way Madrid have always done. Some in Spain said he is crazy. He is not, he just wants full control.

I can understand why Manchester United did not offer Mourinho a job. He would want too much power and maybe be more confrontational. I know Sir Alex Ferguson had all the power, but he built that up himself. Ferguson and Mourinho, along with Pep Guardiola and Carlo Ancelotti, are the best club managers of our time and three of the four could still win another European Cup this season.

Diego says watch out for ... Manchester United v Arsenal on Monday night

Two big teams, neither in their best form, meet in the FA Cup sixth round on Monday. They were one and two when I played in England, now they are three and four.

It’s a good opportunity for both teams to get confidence until the end of the season. United will be favourites at home, but Arsenal are playing well with the ball – better than United – and will be under less pressure away from home, as United are expected to win.

A cup triumph this season would be important for both teams, as would finishing the top four. I love a big evening match at Old Trafford like this one.

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