Out of Play
As Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte continue to argue, we take a look at some of the most incredible managerial feuds
JOSE MOURINHO and Antonio Conte have been keeping us all entertained in the past week or so.
The Manchester United and Chelsea bosses quickly created one of the most memorable feuds in recent history in an incredible attack on each other.
Mourinho and Conte exchanged bitter blows for seemingly no reason, with the clubs not set to face each other for nearly two months and last playing on November 5.
Last week, the Special One defended himself over claims he “lacked passion”, saying he did not feel the need to act like “a clown” on the touchline.
Mourinho said: “Because I don’t behave as a clown, it means I’ve lost my passion? I prefer to behave as I am, more mature, better for myself and the team.
“You don’t have to behave like a crazy guy. It’s not what you do in front of the cameras.”
The jibe was taken personally by Conte, who incredibly hit back claiming he must have “senile dementia”.
The Italian claimed: “I think he has to see himself in the past – maybe he was speaking about himself in the past.
“I think he has to see himself in the past – maybe he was speaking about himself in the past.
“Sometimes I think there is, I don’t know the name, but ‘demenza senile’… when you forget what you do in the past.”
With the pair continuing to exchange verbal blows, we take a look at five other incredible managerial feuds… with Mourinho featuring heavily.
KEVIN KEEGAN vs SIR ALEX FERGUSON
“I WILL love it if we beat them. Love it.”
It’s one of the most memorable outbursts in Premier League history, from the brain of then-Newcastle boss Kevin Keegan, in the 1995-96 season.
The Toon were chasing a famous title and at one stage were 12 points clear at the head of the table.
But as the intensity grew, Keegan appeared to lose his cool after being “goaded” by Ferguson, later admitting: “It really has got to me.”
Man United, under Fergie’s leadership, went on to win the league title by four points.
RAFA BENITEZ vs JOSE MOURINHO
THIS one has rumbled on for some time… 12 years in fact, ever since the “Ghost Goal” incident.
In May 2005, Luis Garcia’s scrambled effort was adjudged to be a goal – ultimately the deciding factor in Liverpool reaching the Champions League final.
Since then, there have been a hatful of soundbytes – including Mourinho’s opening gambit of “you can say the linesman’s scored.”
That was followed by Rafa’s jab, where he claimed: “How can you say Chelsea are the best team in the world? Arsenal play much better football.”
Since then, the pair have been anything but friends and while they do see eye-to-eye a little more these days, no-one will ever forget the Liverpool-Chelsea rivalry of the mid-to-late 00s.
ALEX FERGUSON vs ARSENE WENGER
DURING the late 90s and early 00s, the fight for the Premier League title was essentially just Manchester United vs Arsenal.
With that came the two long-serving bosses of Fergie and Wenger – who were frequently at each other’s throats.
You could say Ferguson took the first swipe the day Wenger was announced when he said: “They say he’s an intelligent man, right? Speaks five languages?
“I’ve got a 15-year-old boy from the Ivory Coast who speaks five languages.”
Since then the pair had always exchanged punches, with Fergie calling Wenger a “disgrace” after the pizza incident at the “Battle of the Buffet”.
The French boss replied claiming the Scot had “lost all sense of reality”.
Ever since the two giants of world football fired bitter blow after bitter blow at the other, before eventually settled their feud a few years ago, with Fergie now retired.
JOSE MOURINHO vs PEP GUARDIOLA
THE two managers are now in the Premier League together, but before that they were in charge of the two biggest clubs in Spain.
While Mourinho ran Real Madrid, Guardiola was in charge of Barcelona – continually exchanging jabs at each other.
One day, Pep could take no more, launching into an incredible rant in the Real Madrid press room.
Guardiola roared: “In this room, he is the chief, the f***ing man. In here he is the f***ing man and I can’t compete with him.”
That year, Madrid went on to win the league… and Guardiola took a year off from all football, before taking over at Bayern Munich.
As soon as he took over the reins at the Bundesliga club, Mourinho couldn’t resist one more cruel taunt.
The Special One said: “When you enjoy what you do, you don’t lose your hair, and Guardiola is bald. He doesn’t enjoy football.”
ARSENE WENGER vs JOSE MOURINHO
ONE final feud and of course it involves that man, Jose…
Over the years, Wenger’s Arsenal and Mourinho’s Chelsea were continually vying for Premier League glory.
The Blues regularly won the league during that span, with Arsenal struggling to compete, with Mourinho quipping: “He [Wenger] is a specialist in failure.”
Arsenal fans slammed Jose, calling him boring, to which Mourinho drily replied: “Boring is ten years without a title.”
Their feud finally became too much and broke the barrier of purely verbal assault, in the 2014-15 season.
That year, the pair physically scrapped on the touchline – with Wenger shoving Mourinho during a game.