Jose Mourinho was back in London on Tuesday night as his Benfica side returned to Stamford Bridge for a Champions League clash with Chelsea.
But while Mourinho’s latest European adventure took centre stage, Martin O’Neill stole a few headlines of his own from the Premier Sports studio.
The former Celtic and Aston Villa boss offered plenty of admiration for the Special One, praising Mourinho’s ability to manage big names and deliver consistent success. But O’Neill couldn’t resist slipping in a cheeky reminder of their past run-ins, particularly Celtic’s controversial 2003 UEFA Cup final against Mourinho’s Porto.
“I think he’s a great manager, a really great manager. He’s very, very clever. But it doesn’t mean that they didn’t cheat their whole way to the UEFA Cup final and lie down in heaps and go to Porto every single day. Travesty, travesty that game,” O’Neill joked on Premier Sports.
@premsportstv “He’s a great manager…it doesn’t mean that they didn’t cheat the whole way through the UEFA Cup final!” 😂 Martin O’Neill still hasn’t forgiven Jose Mourinho for Celtic’s loss to Porto in 2003 🍀 #fyp #championsleague #benfica #chelsea #mourinho #josemourinho #celticfc #fcporto #uefacup #martinoneill
Despite the barbed comment, O’Neill quickly returned to plaudits for Mourinho’s legacy.
The dig may have been tongue-in-cheek, but it shows that even two decades on, O’Neill hasn’t forgotten the frustrations of Celtic’s defeat to Mourinho’s Porto in Seville.
Brendan Rodgers and Celtic will look to emulate that team this season and go on a deep run in the competition.
Celtic have their first home match of the campaign on Thursday night, facing Braga. They’re looking to build on an opening matchday draw against Red Star Belgrade, where the Hoops can feel disappointed that they didn’t pick up all three points.
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