"Dis is football 'eritage."
Many have questioned Jose Mourinho's viability in a day and age where the football he oversees looks more antiquated by the season, but the once self-proclaimed "special one" continues to enjoy success at the highest level.
Following a forgettable spell in north London with Tottenham, Mourinho returned to a land where he's still regarded as immortal. His majestic work with Inter earned him universal reverence among Serie A supporters, and Roma have remained in a perpetual state of gratitude since Mourinho opted to return to Italy in 2021.
Mourinho has also served up some special European nights as Porto and Manchester United manager - his record in finals making for particularly impressive reading.
Jose Mourinho’s record in European finals
1. Porto 3-2 Celtic (2003 UEFA Cup Final)
Mourinho's maiden European success included an atypical victory in the final.
His upstart Porto side were inspired by their sublime number ten, Deco, and they twice took the lead in the 2003 UEFA Cup final against Celtic. Goals from the only two non-Portuguese players in Mourinho's starting XI, Derlei and Dmitri Alenichev, handed Porto 1-0 and 2-1 leads, but they were twice pegged back by excellent Henrik Larsson headers.
The Swede is the only player to score against a Mourinho-coached side in a European final.
After Larsson's second-half heroics forced the contest to extra time, Porto then took advantage of Bobe Balde's dismissal when Derlei crashed home the winner with five minutes remaining.
2. Monaco 0-3 Porto (2004 Champions League Final)
There were little thrills in the 2004 Champions League final as Mourinho's side eased to a 3-0 victory over Didier Deschamps Monaco.
Victory over Man Utd in the round the 16 set the stage for the Portuguese outfit to go all the way, and Porto reached just their second-ever European Cup/Champions League final following wins over Lyon and Deportivo La Coruna.
The showpiece itself was a procession. Monaco, who were surprise finalists themselves, were simply no match for Mourinho's meticulously drilled outfit.
They killed the French side in transition after Carlos Alberto opened the scoring just before half-time, as the once again excellent Deco and Dmitri Alenichev put some shine on Porto's triumph in the second half.
3. Bayern Munich 0-2 Inter (2010 Champions League Final)
Inter's historic treble was so significant considering that it arrived at a time when 'tiki-taka' was so prevalent.
Mourinho's Nerazzurri were the antithesis to the eye-catching possession style inspired by the Spaniards, and Inter's remarkable defensive showing in their semi-final victory over Pep Guardiola's Barcelona was the ultimate vindication of Mourinho's methods.
Their triumph over the competition's winners in 2009 and 2011 took its toll, but Mourinho's remarkably resilient outfit still had one more big performance in them. Diego Milito, who was signed from Genoa the previous summer, inspired Inter to the scudetto and victory in the Coppa Italia final, and the Argentine's brace at the Bernabeu sunk Louis van Gaal's Bayern.
Mourinho's win, however, was bittersweet as he knew it'd be the last time he'd coach his group of warriors.
4. Ajax 0-2 Man Utd (2017 Europa League Final)
Despite eventually ending Guardiola's reign of dominance in La Liga, Mourinho failed to guide Real Madrid to La Decima and his next European success would arrive during his first season at Man Utd.
The Red Devils had endured a sharp decline following Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement in 2013, but Mourinho was regarded as the man to guide them back to the promised land.
His stint at Old Trafford started promisingly as United won a pair of trophies in the form of the Carabao Cup and Europa League during the manager's first season at the helm.
Mourinho oversaw a comfortable 2-0 victory over Ajax in Stockholm, but that was as good as it got for the Portuguese boss in Manchester.
5. Feyenoord 0-1 Roma (2022 Europa Conference League Final)
Mourinho's time at United sparked questions over his capacity to compete with the very best in the world, and his spell at Tottenham did little to help his cause.
By the time he took the Roma job in 2021, Mourinho was seen as man well past his prime and on his way to managerial obscurity.
HAHAHA.
There are semblances of truth regarding Mourinho's career post-mortem, perhaps he's not cut out to lead sides to Premier League title or Champions League glory anymore, but he sure still knows how to win big football matches, especially when his players have brought in.
This Roma squad simply adores their boss, and their first taste of silverware since 2008 was largely owed to Mourinho (and UEFA deciding to introduce a third club competition). The Romans prevailed against Feyenoord in the first-ever Europa Conference League final thanks to Nicolo Zaniolo's goal which preserved Mourinho's perfect record in European finals.
Jose Mourinho in European finals - the numbers
- Games played: 5
- Wins: 5
- Draws: 0
- Losses: 0
- Goals scored: 11
- Goals conceded: 2
- Goal difference: +9
This article was originally published on 90min as Jose Mourinho’s record in European finals.
