So Long And Farewell Jose
By Ian Dovaston
Sports news correspondent
Updated: 12:15, Thursday September 20, 2007
Jose Mourinho's Chelsea departure leaves the Premier League a far less interesting place.
Cheeky smile lit up the league...When the maverick Mourinho turned up at Stamford Bridge he brought a sharp tongue skilled in the art of the media-friendly sound bite.
He had a Latin temperament that attracted trouble and acclaim in equal measure, and a coaching brain capable of upsetting the established elite of the English game.
Indeed, it seemed as if the simmering tension between Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger - once the centre of tabloid attention - was simply a laborious sub-plot as Mourinho became the darling of an adoring media.
His good looks and his cheeky charm, allied to a winning touch, brought two Premier League titles, two Carling Cups and an FA Cup in just three years.
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But while he dressed so stylishly and his manner was so flamboyant, style appears to be a central issue in his leaving - the style, or lack of it, with which his multi-million pound Chelsea team played its football.
He commanded touching loyalty from Chelsea's top stars.
Back in January, when Mourinho was battling Roman Abramovich for more funds in the transfer window, club captain John Terry sought a face-to-face meeting with the club's billionaire owner to state his manager's case.
It was even suggested that Mourinho and another Chelsea star Frank Lampard would fly the Stamford Bridge nest for Real Madrid.
It seemed, like all the best managers, Mourinho was adept at applying pressure through the media.
...but it all ended in tearsSo-called 'close friends' were always ready to battle it out for him in print while he could stand back and deny every word if it suited him.
But, although his utterings brought acclaim - and a fan club outside the normal football audience - there were occasions when he would say rather too much for his own good.
Like when he attacked the ambulance service that dealt with his goalkeeper Petr Cech's serious head injury.
But more often than not, his antics and outbursts were welcomed with incredulity and good humour.
That his dog took centre stage in the run up to their FA Cup final win over Manchester United was typical Mourinho.
The outlandish egg analogies he used earlier this week even brought the accusation that finally he was cracking up.
He never won the Champions' League with Chelsea but he did win hearts. Football in England cannot be the same until he returns.
www.sky.com/news