Inter Milan star Henrikh Mkhitaryan recounted his dispute with legendary coach Jose Mourinho when they were together at Manchester United.
The Armenian international joined United in 2016, coinciding with the arrival of the Special One at Old Trafford, but during their second season, the two began to escalate significantly.
Mkhitaryan revealed what happened between them in a book about his career, writing, “I told him (Mourinho) that you’ve been criticizing me for a year and a half, since I joined Manchester United, and Jose responded, ‘You’re a scumbag.’ That’s when I lost my temper and exchanged insults with him.”
He added, “Mourinho’s response was, ‘Get out of here, I don’t want to see you again.’ During training, the coach didn’t say anything to me. He remained completely silent, but he would send me a WhatsApp message every evening: ‘Mickey, please leave.'”
He continued, “It became a strange situation within the team. I would respond every time with the same repetitive response: ‘I’ll leave if I find the right team, otherwise I’ll wait for the summer.’ As we approached mid-January, the message changed slightly. He said, ‘Mickey, please leave. That way I can get Alexis Sanchez.'”
He continued, “Mino Raiola was working on this conversation with Arsenal. So my response changed as well. I said, ‘I’m not leaving just to help you, and please stop texting me. If you want, talk to Mino.'”
Eventually, Mkhitaryan completed a move to Arsenal in January, and United signed Alexis Sanchez in return. It was one of Mourinho’s most unsuccessful signings with the Red Devils, and the Portuguese was sacked the following year.
