Jose Mourinho will be back in management next season after landing a three-year deal at Roma just 15 days after being sacked by Tottenham.
The Portuguese will take the helm at Roma for the 2021-22 campaign after the Serie A club announced the 58-year-old as Paulo Fonseca's replacement.
It will be the next chapter in a career that has yielded major silverware across Europe, but one that has taken a notable downturn after a trophy-less spell at Spurs.
The cracks had already started to show for Mourinho prior to his Spurs exit on April 19, which came following a series of comments from the former Inter boss that hinted at significant unrest at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Here is a selection of the quotes which capture the Special One's descent into ignominy, a fate Mourinho will be desperate to avoid in the Eternal City as he seeks to recapture his glory days.
SAME COACH, DIFFERENT PLAYERS
After Spurs stayed painfully true to form and surrendered a 2-1 lead to draw 2-2 with lowly Newcastle United, Mourinho promptly laid the blame at the feet of his players.
When it was put to him that his teams are normally good at holding onto leads, he said: "Same coach, different players."
YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO FEED YOUR KIDS
In one of the more bizarre post-match media conferences, Mourinho started ranting about the importance of feeding your kids.
It was after Spurs had lost 3-1 to Manchester United, with Red Devils boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer criticising Son Heung-min for what he considered a bit of play acting.
The Norwegian said if his child had behaved like that, he would have deprived them of their food. It was, evidently, a joke.
Mourinho addressed this, entirely unprompted, but for him it was no laughing matter.
"It is very, very sad," he said. "I think it's really sad that you don't ask me about it. It's really sad that you don't have the moral honesty to treat me the same way you treat others.
"I just want to say, Sonny is very lucky that his father is a better person than Ole, because I think a father – I am a father – you have always to feed your kids, it doesn't matter what they do.
"If you have to steal to feed your kids, you steal. I am very, very disappointed, and like we say in Portugal bread is bread and cheese is cheese, I told Ole already what I think about his comments."
IT'S NOT ROCKET SCIENCE, OR IS IT?
Modesty appears to be an alien concept to Mourinho, who had no hesitation in comparing himself to NASA scientists.
Addressing the seemingly justified criticism he was receiving in light of Spurs' underwhelming campaign, the Portuguese went on the defensive.
"I don't think anybody is going to discuss rocket science with the guys from NASA, with everybody around the world," he said.
"They think they can discuss football with one of the most important managers in the game. That's the beauty of football.
"I got used to it, I appreciate that, so that's fine for me."
MOURINISTAS LOVE ME
The criticism never seemed to leave Mourinho too disheartened, such is the strength of his conviction that he has an army of loyal followers.
He calls them 'Mourinistas', and they are the source of his strength.
He said: "Honestly, I get my strength from myself but mainly from the people that I love and the people who I know they love me, even if many of them I don't know them, I haven't met them.
"I used to call them the 'Mourinistas', because in Portugal we use 'ista' in the end of the name of the club that we love, to express the support."
BALE SAGA
Gareth Bale's signing on loan from Real Madrid gave Spurs fans hope of a genuine title challenge, but that too proved a false dawn.
There were many hints that all was not well with Bale's second coming at Spurs, with Mourinho left fuming by an Instagram post in which the Wales star had suggested he had been involved in full training, despite the head coach insisting he was not fit.
"There was a contradiction between the post and the reality," said Mourinho.
SORROW SHOWS AFTER DINAMO BLOW
It wasn't all strength and defiance, though, as was evident after the shock Europa League exit to Dinamo Zagreb.
"To say I feel sad is not enough," he lamented. "What I feel is much more than sadness."
INDIVIDUAL MISTAKES
Going back to January, the willingness to turn on his own players was clear for all to see.
After a 1-1 draw with struggling Fulham, Mourinho saw "individual mistakes", though he did not confess that any were his own.
"There are things that are individual, that are down to individual qualities and individual mistakes," he said. "Basically I cannot say much more than that."
DIER DISAGREEMENT
After Eric Dier sat out Spurs' 2-0 win over West Brom in February, Mourinho said the England international was suffering a crisis of confidence.
However, in an open show of dissent, Dier insisted: "Confidence-wise, I don't feel like I've been in a bad place all season."
Steve Cotterill leaves role as Shrewsbury manager
Steve Cotterill has left his role as manager of Shrewsbury.
The 58-year-old had already said his position at the club was uncertain and the Shrews have now confirmed his departure.
A statement read: “The club would like to place on record their thanks to Steve for all his hard work and commitment during the last two and a half years, taking us from a relegation place in League One to 12th in the table and also for working from his hospital bed during the Covid-19 pandemic.”
Cotterill guided the club to 12th in League One last season and spent 49 days at the Bristol Royal Infirmary after contracting Covid and developing pneumonia in 2021.
Cotterill, who joined the club in November 2020, released a statement though the League Managers’ Association.
“I’m proud of the work that has been done by everyone in the past two and a half years at the club,” he said. “From fighting relegation to a top-half finish. I am confident this team will continue its progression next season.
“Working through Covid was tough and I have to thank my incredible staff for their help throughout.
“I would also like to thank the players. It is a fantastic group that gave me absolutely everything, right up to the last game of the season. The relationship I had with them was very special.”
Scottish Gas agrees five-year deal to sponsor Scottish Cup
Scottish Gas has filled the void for Scottish Cup sponsorship in a deal understood to be worth about £5million a year.
A five-year contract has been agreed with the Scottish Football Association which will see the energy firm become the title sponsor of both the men’s and women’s competitions. The deal will also provide a major boost to grassroots football projects.
The deal was announced just before the SFA annual general meeting, which saw Alloa owner Mike Mulraney confirmed as president following the end of Rod Petrie’s four-year term. Hamilton’s Les Gray replaces Mulraney as vice-president.
Scottish Gas will become the first title sponsor of the Scottish Cup since William Hill’s nine-year partnership ended in 2020.
The men’s competition will be known as the Scottish Gas Scottish Cup from next season, its 150th anniversary, and the funding will also benefit the Scottish Gas Women’s Scottish Cup, the final of which was staged at Hampden this year for the first time.
The deal will help fund 120 new week-long holiday camps which will provide 6,000 opportunities for children to play football and receive free lunches.
The investment will also help Scottish Para-Football’s disability community initiatives by working with six clubs each year to set up the required infrastructure and playing conditions.
Scottish Gas will also work with the SFA to explore ways of making Hampden more sustainable and design a programme for clubs to help “reduce their carbon footprint and create more sustainable communities”.
SFA chief executive Ian Maxwell said: “I am absolutely delighted to welcome Scottish Gas on board as a committed multi-level partner and supporter of the Power of Football.
“As part of our 150th anniversary celebrations, they will help us activate the oldest and youngest cup trophies in world football, bringing new and existing fans on that famous road to Hampden.
“Through this agreement, Scottish Gas will also help reinforce the impact our national game has at grassroots level, especially among those whose need is greatest. We look forward to bringing the partnership to life and highlighting the ways in which, together, we can inspire the nation and transform lives.”
Chris O’Shea, chief executive of Centrica, the owner of Scottish Gas said: “We’re delighted to be investing in our customers’ communities and I’m particularly excited about the work we will be doing to support holiday camps, Para-Football and the women’s game across Scotland.”
Mulraney welcomed the deal and promised “100 per cent commitment and focus” on his new role.
“The Scottish FA is committed to inspiring the nation and transforming lives,” the Alloa chairman added.
“We made an impassioned plea at Holyrood only last week urging government and politicians to see us as allies in improving the health and wellbeing of the country and that is something I am determined to facilitate in a practical sense.
“The national association is primarily responsible for the development of the game, the grassroots and it is imperative we work with governments both national and local, philanthropists, commercial and charitable partners, to improve the fundamental infrastructure of our game – facilities.
“We have already agreed a £20m fund with the Department of Culture, Media and Sport and need more investment.
“We need to retain and upgrade the pitches we currently have, attain new funding for new facilities, especially to meet the growth of girls’ and women’s football, and ensure we contribute to sustainable clubs and communities, both from a financial and an environmental perspective.
“This will be a key priority for me as president and I look forward to working with partners to improve our infrastructure.”
Halsey calls for points deductions to tackle referee abuse
Jose Mourinho's behaviour and the subsequent abuse of Anthony Taylor by Roma fans has led to former Premier League referee Mark Halsey calling for stricter punishments.
Taylor and his family were verbally and physically targeted at Budapest airport in the wake of Roma's Europa League final defeat to Sevilla.
Both teams felt aggrieved by some of Taylor's decisions in the game, but Mourinho was particularly vehement, and was filmed shouting abuse at the official long after the final whistle had blown.
Halsey was infuriated by what he saw.
"Everybody that's seen the footage or watched the game, I thought both teams' conduct with their players and the coaching staff was appalling," Halsey told Stats Perform.
"On the night I thought Anthony [Taylor] and his team had a superb game under the most difficult of circumstances. When players don't want to listen, it makes it so very difficult for the referee.
"The referee can only referee what's in front of him. If I was being ultra critical, perhaps they should have removed team officials from the bench. But having said that, I thought they were outstanding on the night.
"Obviously, the criticism of him in the car park when [Mourinho] volleyed abuse again, I think it's appalling, and Roma fans having seen that, I think that's what led to the scenes that we saw at the airport. As much as everybody loves Jose Mourinho, you cannot do that. You cannot condone these actions.
"I think in the cold light of day, when he sits back down and looks at himself and his family looks at the way he behaves, I think they will think that he deserve everything that's coming his way regarding punishments."
Now, Halsey wants governing bodies such as UEFA to crack down on the abuse by enforcing points deductions.
He continued: "That was a showcase. The Premier League, the Champions League, Europa League are watched around the world by millions and millions of people, including children.
"In England, we have a problem at a grassroots level, we have a problem with youth football, we have a problem with parents. They watch that, and think they can get away with it.
"This season we've seen over £1.5million worth of fines dished out for player and team officials' behaviour on the field of play. Out of the 92 clubs, 52 have been charged £1.5m in fines. What does that tell you? That tells you that the fines are not working.
"So we've got to start with the points deduction right at the very top. In fact, that goes for if you're playing the Champions League.
"If Roma are in the Europa League next season, and Sevilla are in the Champions League, they've got to start with a points deduction. [They've] got to hit the clubs in the pocket, and take the points away.
"Those points could stop them qualifying for the knockout stages. They've really got to come down hard on them."
As for Mourinho, Halsey hopes the Roma boss faces a significant punishment.
He said: "I just think it was absolutely appalling. I've never seen a game like that and a referee treated like that anywhere.
"Even in my time as an official, I never ever got treatment like that, and I refereed all over the world. That's why I think that UEFA has got to come down extremely hard on Roma and José as well as Sevilla for their behaviour on the field of play."
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