Published 11:40 IST, January 11th 2021
Did Jose Mourinho buy Marine FC ticket after club raffled off 20,000 tickets?
Tottenham Hotspur manager Jose Mourinho has confirmed he bought a virtual Marine FC ticket, the proceeds of which will be directed towards the raffle.
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Premier League giants Tottenham Hotspur humiliated eighth-tier side Marine FC in the third round of the FA Cup courtesy of a hat-trick from Carlos Vinicius. Jose Mourinho was especially ecstatic after the victory, seemingly visible during his post-match interaction with the media. An interesting anecdote has now come to the fore about the former Manchester United boss, who is known for his witty response during pressers.
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Marine FC gripped in financial crisis amid COVID-19 lockdown
According to several reports in the media, Mourinho bought a ticket for the raffle, which was organised by Marine FC. The eighth-tier side have struggled on the financial front after their hopes of generating revenues were dashed after the Merseyside region was placed in Tier-3 of Britain's COVID-19 regulations.
The Merseyside outfit were hoping to welcome at least 500 fans for the FA Cup game, but now face losses estimated at £100,000. The crisis deepened further when an advertiser decided to withdraw his £20,000 package after the announcement that the game will be played behind closed doors.
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20000 Marine FC tickets on sale, Mourinho purchases one
But, former Liverpool star Jamie Carragher has come to the club's rescue. Carragher, who runs the JC23 Foundation, has stepped in to sponsor Marine FC's dugouts and pre-match warm-up tops. The club are also raising revenue with the sale of 20000 virtual Marine FC tickets at the cost of £10 per unit, with the amount set to be raffled.
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Speaking to the media, Mourinho confirmed that he will buy a ticket. "If I win, I cannot do it (manage Marine) because we have our pre-season. I don't think I will have conditions to do that. But the meaning of it makes me say yes to buying", said the former Real Madrid manager.
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Marine FC vs Tottenham FA Cup results: Carlos Vinicius rounds off Tottenham goals' feast
Mourinho's men arrived in top form against the Merseyside outfit on Sunday. Carlos Vinicius netted a first-half hat-trick to help his side sail towards a comfortable win. Besides, the team maintained possession for a major part of the game with Lucas Moura and Alfie Devine bagging one goal each to round off the Tottenham goals' fiesta on Sunday.
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Image courtesy: Tottenham website
11:40 IST, January 11th 2021