During a conversation with Rio Ferdinand, Jose Mourinho disclosed that he was given the opportunity to lead England.
Mourinho has risen through the ranks to become one of the best managers of his generation. The Portuguese manager has managed Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid, Manchester United, and Roma during his storied career.
Mourinho has frequently been associated with leading an international squad; he has stated that he was given the opportunity to lead England.
In a conversation with former Three Lions and United defender Ferdinand, Mourinho stated: “I turned down fantastic job opportunities.”
“The first one was even very very hard to refuse because it was Portugal.”
He continued: “I could be their coach in the national team, also yours.
“I had it there, on the table.”
At this point, Ferdinand put his hand on his face and said: “No way!”
The 61-year-old most recently served as Roma’s manager in Italian Serie A. After leading the team to victory in the UEFA Europa Conference League in 2022, Mourinho guided the team to its first trophy in fourteen years.
However, Mourinho was fired by Roma last month following a run of underwhelming performances in the 23/24 season that culminated in four losses in seven games.
A Roma statement read in full: “We would like to thank Jose on behalf of all of us at AS Roma for his passion and efforts since his arrival at the club.
“We will always have great memories of his tenure at Roma, but we believe that an immediate change is in the best interests of the club.
“We wish Jose and his assistants all the best in their future endeavours.”
The ‘Special One’ has since been connected to both a return to Chelsea and a move to the Saudi Professional League.
