New Netflix documentary unveils dramatic details from 2013 when José Mourinho backed out at the last minute from succeeding Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United and returned to Chelsea.
In 2013, Portuguese football manager José Mourinho was on the verge of taking over Manchester United, but changed his mind at the last moment and returned to Chelsea, as revealed in a new Netflix documentary. Legendary Sir Alex Ferguson, who ended his era at Old Trafford at the end of the 2012/13 season, confirmed that the job was offered and that Mourinho initially accepted.
Mourinho admitted that it was not easy to break the news to a man who had spent over a quarter of a century at United's helm. Sources differ on the exact length of Ferguson's tenure, N1 BiH cites 27 years, while another source mentions 26 years, but it is undeniable that his reign was one of the longest and most trophy-laden in football history.
In the same documentary, Ferguson revealed how dramatic the situation was. "[Mourinho] was offered the job, yes. I sat him down and explained the situation. And as far as I knew, he was accepting. And then within a few hours, it changed," the legendary Scot recounted.
The reason for the turnaround lay in the Portuguese's strong emotional bond with London's Chelsea, where he had won two English league titles in his first spell. Mourinho felt he needed to feel loved, as he himself said, especially after a draining period at Real Madrid. "I needed to feel loved," his quote read.
"In the evening, he called me and cried, and said: 'Oh, I can't do this, I've given my word to Chelsea, and I won't break my word.'"
With these words, Ferguson described in the documentary the phone call that followed Mourinho's decision, which testifies to the weight of the moment for both giants of football management.
After Mourinho's refusal, Manchester United entrusted the bench to David Moyes. However, that choice proved unsuccessful, Moyes spent less than a season at Old Trafford before being sacked. Ironically, Mourinho did become United's manager three years later, in 2016.
In his first season at the Old Trafford helm, he won the Europa League and the League Cup, but his tenure ended in late 2018 when he was dismissed. At the time he was supposed to take over in 2013, Mourinho was already at his peak, he had league titles in Portugal, England, Italy, and Spain, as well as two Champions League titles.
More than a decade later, it remains one of the biggest "what if" questions in Manchester United's recent history, what would the post-Ferguson era have looked like if Mourinho had said "yes" in 2013?
