EPL: Why I had many altercations with Mourinho – Arsene Wenger, ex-Arsenal coach
Former Arsenal manager, Arsene Wenger, has revealed that he had many aggravations with Jose Mourinho during their time in the English Premier League because Chelsea started spending money ‘they didn’t earn’.
Wenger had several clashes with Mourinho during the Portuguese’s spells with both Chelsea and Manchester United in the Premier League.
Both Wenger and Mourinho made barbs at one another in press conferences, while the duo also clashed on the touchline on several occasions ever since Mourinho originally joined Chelsea.
Wenger, who is currently serving as FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development, has opened up on how the heated rivalry began when Mourinho, who is now the manager of AS Roma, originally arrived in England.
It all started when Roman Abramovich took over Chelsea back in 2003 before appointing Mourinho just a year later when they began spending big money in the transfer window.
Chelsea signed the likes of Didier Drogba, Petr Cech, Arjen Robben, Ricardo Carvalho, Paulo Ferreira, Matej Kezman, and many others that the first summer, but that was just the start of the big-money spending.
“My rivalry was more with the clubs than the persons, I never made any statements on a personal level,” Wenger told Sky Sports.
“I had a lot of aggravation with [José] Mourinho at the time because I felt that Chelsea were the first club that came in and spent money they didn’t earn.”