Jose Mourinho got his Drogba facts wildly wrong after Paul Merson offended him

18 February 2024 , 06:00

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Jose Mourinho has never been afraid to talk up his credentials (Image: Nicolò Campo)

Jose Mourinho has the record to stack up against most managers in world football and isn't afraid to shout about it.

The Special One is well known for his brash statements and self-confidence and he had no problem defending his record after criticism from Paul Merson back in 2020. The former Arsenal forward questioned Mourinho's ability to get the best out of Harry Kane during his time at Tottenham, after a draw against Manchester United in which the forward struggled.

"When Jose took the job I worried for Harry Kane," said Merson. "He played under [Mauricio] Pochettino and Tottenham sort of had a go wherever they went. There were goals, there were crosses, there were shots.

"[But now] he's going to be playing up front on his own and it is going to be hard work. In the end, he's trying to hit 60-yard passes just to be involved in the game. That's not Harry Kane."

Safe to say, Mourinho came suitably prepared to hit back in his next opportunity with the press. The former Real Madrid and Chelsea boss appeared to have done his research to leave Merson looking truly misinformed, however, the numbers didn't entirely stack up.

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Mourinho said: "I can say, that I had a few strikers that played for me and they are not bad. I had one guy called [Didier] Drogba, he played for me for four seasons, he scored 186 goals, which gives an average of 46 goals per season.

"I had one guy that is not also bad, he plays forJuventusnow[Cristiano Ronaldo].He played for me for three seasons, he scored 168 goals, which gives an average of 56 goals per season.

Jose Mourinho and Didier Drogba (Paul Gilham)

"I had another guy that is not also bad. His name is [Karim] Benzema. He played for me three seasons, he was not always starting because he was quite young at the time, he scored 78 goals in three seasons, which gives a 26-goal average per season.

"I had another called [Diego] Milito, he played one season, he scored 30 goals, won three titles. Of course the average is 30. I had another guy, he played for one and a half seasons, in the other half he had a big injury. A tall guy called Zlatan [Ibrahimovic]. He scored 58 goals, which gives a 29 average per season.

"So dear Paul, I have lots of respect for you. I think Harry Kane has no problem at all to score goals in my teams, especially when he's fit and fresh and has routines of playing. That's my message to somebody I have lots of respect for."

Mourinho has watched over an impressive repertoire of strikers but his error when discussing Drogba might have overshadowed the point he was trying to make. The former Ivory Coast international managed a commendable 73 goals in 186 appearances under the Portuguese coach, with Mourinho appearing to have jotted down the wrong digits.

Regardless, Kane was fine during Mourinho's time with Spurs. England's recorded scorer racked up 45 goals in 62 appearances, and 18 assists too.

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Scott Trotter