Benni McCarthy: “I hope Mourinho comes out and admits he made a mistake” | OneFootball

Winner of the Champions League with FC Porto under the management of José Mourinho, Benni McCarthy remains one of the most beloved figures in the Porto universe and also in English football, where he played for several seasons with Blackburn Rovers and West Ham.

In statements to the ‘BBC’, the former Dragons striker expressed his disappointment with José Mourinho’s “very wrong” comment at the end of the match, when the coach, in the press conference, said that Vinícius Júnior should have been carried out of the stadium on shoulders and not “stir the hearts” of the opposing fans.

“He could have handled the situation better or chosen his words more carefully, but emotions got the better of him. I know the statement he made was very wrong. But we are all human, we all make mistakes,” he began by saying, then emphasizing that José Mourinho “is the most integrous man any African player will ever play for”: “Coming from someone I know personally, and knowing how he feels about our continent, our people, and the players who play for him, he is the most integrous man any African player will ever play for.”

Before finishing, Benni McCarthy stressed that he would like to see José Mourinho publicly admit that he “took a position that was not the right one,” especially because “that is the kind of man he is”: “I think it was an emotional, difficult decision, where he may have taken a position that was not the right one – and that, later on, I hope he will come out publicly and say he made a mistake, because that’s what I’d like to think, that’s the kind of man he is.”

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