Santana Lopes on Benfica boss: I don't like Mourinho | OneFootball

It was in 2007 that, after leaving Chelsea, José Mourinho returned to Portugal, in what was a moment of extreme media attention. Precisely at the time when the 'Special One' arrived in Lisbon, Santana Lopes was live on SIC Notícias, with the channel choosing to interrupt the politician's program to show the coach's arrival. Indignant, Santana Lopes left the studio and now, after Mourinho's return - preparing for the game with Rio Ave - to Benfica, the politician recalled the moment with some humor.

"I received so many messages, it's funny. At the same time, it seems like I don't like Mourinho and that I have a grudge against him. I have nothing against Mourinho, I like him, but well, that scene stuck," he began by saying on Canal Now, recalling the messages he received when José Mourinho returned to Benfica.

Asked if he would leave a program again if interrupted, Santana Lopes gave an animated response: "If they interrupted me again, I wouldn't leave because… I also liked Ana Lourenço a lot, it was with her that I did that. Poor thing, she wasn't to blame at all, but she never expected me to do that."

Finally, Santana Lopes revealed what he felt when he made that decision: "I left there thinking I was going to get a lot of criticism, that they would call me all sorts of things. That time it was the opposite, people agreed and still do. Mourinho returned, and that's good."

It should be remembered that, at the time, Santana Lopes made a point of showing his indignation at what happened, having said the following: "Even if it were an important event for the country, for the world that justified it, the President of the Republic, the prime minister, now a football coach and I like José Mourinho..."

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