Published 14:40 IST, April 16th 2020
Jose Mourinho threatened to replace John Terry with £100 million centre-backs at Chelsea
Chelsea legend John Terry disclosed how current Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho managed to get the best out of his players during his time at Chelsea.
- SportFit
- 3 min read
Chelsea legend John Terry has opened up on the time Jose Mourinho threatened to sell him and fellow centre-back partner Gary Cahill during a poor pre-season training session. The Portuguese manager returned to Stamford Bridge in 2013 for his second spell at Chelsea after leading the Blues to consecutive league titles in his first stint between 2004 and 2007. However, former England defender John Terry revealed an incident during the intense Jose Mourinho Chelsea career that forced him to step up his game.
Jose Mourinho planned to replace John Terry at Chelsea
Having arrived in West London once again in 2013 with a massive reputation, the 'Special One' led the Blues to the Premier League title in the 2014-15 campaign. Upon returning for pre-season training ahead of the new season, John Terry explained how Jose Mourinho made an example out of Gary Cahill and himself by threatening to splurge £100 million on new central defenders. Chelsea had recently signed Diego Costa, Cesc Fabregas, Filipe Luis and forced the defensive duo to raise the bar after a sloppy start on the first day of pre-season training when the defensive duo kept losing possession.
John Terry praises Jose Mourinho for his thinking process
Despite the end of the Jose Mourinho Chelsea career midway through the 2015-16 season, five-time Premier League winner John Terry hailed the 57-year-old for his ability to press buttons when necessary. Following the warning from Jose Mourinho, John Terry and Gary Cahill began clattering into their teammates and admitted that they looked much sharper with the ball at their feet. After the first training session in the pre-season, Jose Mourinho spoke to Cahill and Terry and explained that he wanted to bring the best out of his players and on the back of the intense training session, the two English defenders would be able to start for Chelsea for the upcoming season. Terry praised Jose Mourinho for his ability to think way ahead of others during an Instagram Live chat with Scottish snooker legend Stephen Hendry.
Jose Mourinho Chelsea career: The highs and lows
Jose Mourinho's first stint at Chelsea began in 2004 after winning the Champions League with Porto. In his first spell with Chelsea, Mourinho won two Premier League titles, two League Cups and one FA Cup in three seasons. Following disagreements with club owner Roman Abramovich, Mourinho left Chelsea in 2007 only to make his return to London six years later. The Jose Mourinho Chelsea career was rekindled when he won the League Cup and the Premier League in 2015 but was sacked after two and a half seasons with the Blues following a run of poor results later that year.
Updated 14:40 IST, April 16th 2020