Frank Lampard and John Terry have described the Chelsea squad's emotional reaction to Jose Mourinho's first departure from the club, in a new Netflix documentary.
Mourinho had two spells as Chelsea boss and won three Premier League titles at Stamford Bridge. Two of those came during his first tenure, when he led the club to back-to-back titles after arriving as the self-proclaimed 'Special One,' but cracks appeared in his second season in charge.
The three-part Netflix docu-series, titled MOURINHO and due for release on Tuesday, examines how his first spell at Chelsea unravelled before his sacking in September 2007. Lampard and Terry were Chelsea's two most important players during Mourinho's glory days, and both spoke in the documentary about how much his exit affected them personally and the wider squad.
"I remember him coming into the dressing room and he said to me that he'd been sacked," Lampard said.
"I couldn't think about how much this man had helped my career, how much I loved working with him. There were tears, which is not normal in the dressing room when a manager leaves."
Former Chelsea captain Terry made his adoration for Mourinho clear in the documentary, saying "I would leave that pitch in a coffin for him." Almost two decades on, he still blames himself for the manager's exit.
"You've got grown men, tears running down their face, not really understanding why. And even still today I'm like, that's my fault," Terry said. "When we drew the Champions League game [with Rosenborg], my man scored. If I didn't let that person score, would he have lasted another couple of years? Who knows? I still feel kind of responsible for that, if that makes sense. It's just disappointing how it all ended, if I'm honest. I absolutely loved him and adored him and was more upset than anyone, to be honest."
Mourinho's fractured relationship with Abramovich
Mourinho said in the documentary that his relationship with then-owner Roman Abramovich had grown increasingly strained despite the club's success on the pitch.
"In my work, the triangle: Jose, Peter Kenyon (former chief executive), Roman was invaded by strangers," Mourinho said. "In the beginning, you play at Stamford Bridge, you look to the box, Roman, his wife, with one or two persons of his confidence. A few seasons later: former players, agents. These kinds of people, they know where the money is."
The Sardinia boat request
Mourinho also recalled a bizarre incident that affected his relationship with Abramovich, in which the Russian owner asked him to leave club training to help a group of strangers abroad as a favour.
"I think Roman changed," Mourinho said. "For example, one day Peter came to me quite embarrassed and he told me, 'Jose, I have to tell you something. The boss is in Sardinia with these boats, and the people that work in these boats they play football against guys from the hotel, and they are losing. Can you go there to win a game for him?' 'No, Peter, I have training today. I have to prepare for tomorrow; I cannot go.' And he [Roman] was not happy with that."
Reconciliation and the Manchester United U-turn
Mourinho and Abramovich eventually repaired their relationship, and Mourinho turned down the chance to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United in 2013 in order to return to Stamford Bridge.
In the docu-series, Mourinho revealed that he had verbally agreed to take over at Old Trafford before making a dramatic U-turn to rejoin Chelsea.
