Mourinho in the mix: ex-Benfica man praises and warns, "Difficult to work..." | OneFootball

At a time when the official announcement of José Mourinho as the new coach of Benfica could be just hours away, there have been many reactions to this news. Nemanja Matic, who has already played at Estádio da Luz as an Eagles player, lavished praise on the Special One, but also issued a warning about his former boss.

In statements to the international press, the Serbian midfielder, who has worked with the Portuguese coach at several clubs in recent years, recalled the moment he met him: "I have a special relationship with José Mourinho since I signed for Chelsea in 2014".

However, now wearing number 18 for Sassuolo, a club promoted to Italy’s Serie A, he left a warning about Benfica’s imminent coach: "Nevertheless, our relationship was not always good, sometimes it is very difficult to work with him. He is tough, he’s old school".

On the other hand, despite the difficulties, the Serbian international stresses that his career reached its current heights thanks to the presence of the Special One: "I think I grew as a man with him, I learned to fight more and to become a winner. He teaches those around him to be winners".

Finally, the former Benfica player, who also worked with Mourinho at Manchester United, highlighted the role the Portuguese coach had in England: "He is probably the coach who changed football the most since he arrived, especially in the Premier League".

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.