He can be ruthless — Super Eagles star explains what playing for Mourinho is like

Super Eagles defender Bright Osayi-Samuel recently shared some insights into his experience working under Jose Mourinho, lauding the Portuguese tactician for his unique insight into the game and revealing his management style.

The 28-year-old played under Mourinho in his final season at Fenerbahçe before joining Birmingham City in the Championship. In their season together, the Yellow Canaries finished behind Galatasaray; despite the lack of success, the fullback soaked up knowledge from the renowned tactician.

The Nigerian defender revealed that Mourinho had an impact on him from his first moments at the club. He said that Mourinho was able to analyse his game instantly, and he revealed some of the ex-Chelsea coach’s methodology. 

“I remember my first day; I came late to training because I had a national team game,” Osayi told Oma Sports. “The first thing he said to me was, ‘You are a good player, but you need to run more.’ I was like, what? You know? That just shows what type of guy he is. 

“He can be ruthless when things go wrong. There were times we had to stay on the training ground for 34 days because we didn’t play well. But if we played well, he’d give us four or five days off.”

Osayi enjoyed his time under Mourinho, stating that the former Chelsea and Real Madrid boss regularly told stories from his time at great clubs.

“He had stories for days,” Osayi continued. “We would stay in his room the day before a game and just speak for hours. He would tell us stories of players, and we’d all mention players we knew, because he had a story for every single player. He has a rich history of the game. He’s a great guy, and I’m honoured to work with him.”