John Terry Row Led to Jose Mourinho's Chelsea Exit, Claims Claude Makelele
Midfielder says a 'war' between the pair hastened the Portuguese's departure from Stamford Bridge
The former Chelsea midfielder Claude Makelele has alleged in his autobiography that a row between the club's captain, John Terry, and Jose Mourinho over the center-half's fitness early last season contributed significantly to the Portuguese manager being sacked at Stamford Bridge.
The former France international, writing in Claude Makelele – Tout Simplement, which was published this week and goes on the shelves in Francetoday, says Mourinho had grown concerned at Terry's succession of back injuries and decided to rest his captain, who will lead the team against Everton in today's FA Cup final at Wembley, for a few games in the autumn of 2007. Makelele's account of the dispute – rejected by Chelsea and Terry – indicates that player power was rife at Stamford Bridge and that Roman Abramovich, the owner, sided with the center-back.
Reflecting on the end of Mourinho's glittering three-year reign at Chelsea, which had yielded two league titles, two Carling Cups and an FA Cup, Makelele recalled: "I got the news from Didier Drogba. 'He'll be sacked tomorrow,' he told me. I was so surprised. I thought Mourinho was practically untouchable … The next morning at Cobham, our new training center, it was chaos. There were photographers everywhere, journalists trying to get in touch with me, even helicopters flying over our heads.
"Most of the players were together in the changing rooms. I met Rui [Faria], our physical trainer, and asked him if everything was OK. 'No, no Claude. The rumors are true. The coach has been fired.' I asked him why and he explained a lot of players had complained about him, notably John Terry. I then learnt Mourinho had told the club's captain that he was going to be left on the bench for a few matches to give him enough time to recover from a back operation he'd undergone in the middle of the previous season [in December 2006].
"John let it be known that he was OK to play on but Mourinho insisted. He told him his [Terry's] level of performance was suffering because of his back problems and repeated clearly that he [Terry] would be replaced until told otherwise. He even pointed out that the central defence would, from now on, be Ricardo Carvalho and Alex. War had been declared."
Terry has consistently stated that he played no intentional role in the departure of Mourinho and has denied that he was disloyal to him. Indeed, the pair have remained in regular contact since Mourinho moved to Internazionale last summer. Yet relations between the club's most successful manager and Abramovich had deteriorated from the middle of the 2006-07 season when they clashed over transfer policy and the hiring of Avram Grant, who would eventually leave his role as director of football to succeed Mourinho.
"For John this was treason," adds Makelele, who left Chelsea for Paris StGermain last year. "He believed – rightly, in my opinion – that by giving his all in the second half of the previous season, even though he was in great pain, he deserved more playing time in order to find his optimum playing level. Mourinho had provoked a 'clash' too far. Had it been me, [Michael] Ballack or [Andriy] Shevchenko it might have passed but, if there is one person who is untouchable at Chelsea, then it is John. And Mourinho knew.
"So why take such a risk? Because he'd had enough and was looking for a way out? As it was always, when John Terry let his unhappiness be known to [the chief executive Peter] Kenyon and asked him for a transfer, Abramovich reacted immediately. The departure of Terry was unimaginable from the point of view of the supporters, the players or the owners. Mourinho was asked to pack his bags."
Chelsea disputed Makelele's claim. "That is not a true version of events with regards to the transfer request as there wasn't one," the club said. "Nor was the captain responsible for the departure of Jose Mourinho, which was mutually agreed between Jose and the club." Lawyers for Terry have also released a statement denying Makelele's assertion: "It has been claimed John was in some way involved with the removal of Jose Mourinho as manager. This is categorically untrue and there is no foundation in this allegation. We also confirm (should it even need confirming) that John has never asked to be transferred from Chelsea."
Mourinho's successors, Grant and Luiz Felipe Scolari, each failed to convince the Chelsea dressing room that they were the right man to lead the team to success, with Abramovich having spoken with Petr Cech, Didier Drogba and Michael Ballack before taking the decision to relieve the Brazilian of his duties back in February.
The former France international, writing in Claude Makelele – Tout Simplement, which was published this week and goes on the shelves in Francetoday, says Mourinho had grown concerned at Terry's succession of back injuries and decided to rest his captain, who will lead the team against Everton in today's FA Cup final at Wembley, for a few games in the autumn of 2007. Makelele's account of the dispute – rejected by Chelsea and Terry – indicates that player power was rife at Stamford Bridge and that Roman Abramovich, the owner, sided with the center-back.
Reflecting on the end of Mourinho's glittering three-year reign at Chelsea, which had yielded two league titles, two Carling Cups and an FA Cup, Makelele recalled: "I got the news from Didier Drogba. 'He'll be sacked tomorrow,' he told me. I was so surprised. I thought Mourinho was practically untouchable … The next morning at Cobham, our new training center, it was chaos. There were photographers everywhere, journalists trying to get in touch with me, even helicopters flying over our heads.
"Most of the players were together in the changing rooms. I met Rui [Faria], our physical trainer, and asked him if everything was OK. 'No, no Claude. The rumors are true. The coach has been fired.' I asked him why and he explained a lot of players had complained about him, notably John Terry. I then learnt Mourinho had told the club's captain that he was going to be left on the bench for a few matches to give him enough time to recover from a back operation he'd undergone in the middle of the previous season [in December 2006].
"John let it be known that he was OK to play on but Mourinho insisted. He told him his [Terry's] level of performance was suffering because of his back problems and repeated clearly that he [Terry] would be replaced until told otherwise. He even pointed out that the central defence would, from now on, be Ricardo Carvalho and Alex. War had been declared."
Terry has consistently stated that he played no intentional role in the departure of Mourinho and has denied that he was disloyal to him. Indeed, the pair have remained in regular contact since Mourinho moved to Internazionale last summer. Yet relations between the club's most successful manager and Abramovich had deteriorated from the middle of the 2006-07 season when they clashed over transfer policy and the hiring of Avram Grant, who would eventually leave his role as director of football to succeed Mourinho.
"For John this was treason," adds Makelele, who left Chelsea for Paris StGermain last year. "He believed – rightly, in my opinion – that by giving his all in the second half of the previous season, even though he was in great pain, he deserved more playing time in order to find his optimum playing level. Mourinho had provoked a 'clash' too far. Had it been me, [Michael] Ballack or [Andriy] Shevchenko it might have passed but, if there is one person who is untouchable at Chelsea, then it is John. And Mourinho knew.
"So why take such a risk? Because he'd had enough and was looking for a way out? As it was always, when John Terry let his unhappiness be known to [the chief executive Peter] Kenyon and asked him for a transfer, Abramovich reacted immediately. The departure of Terry was unimaginable from the point of view of the supporters, the players or the owners. Mourinho was asked to pack his bags."
Chelsea disputed Makelele's claim. "That is not a true version of events with regards to the transfer request as there wasn't one," the club said. "Nor was the captain responsible for the departure of Jose Mourinho, which was mutually agreed between Jose and the club." Lawyers for Terry have also released a statement denying Makelele's assertion: "It has been claimed John was in some way involved with the removal of Jose Mourinho as manager. This is categorically untrue and there is no foundation in this allegation. We also confirm (should it even need confirming) that John has never asked to be transferred from Chelsea."
Mourinho's successors, Grant and Luiz Felipe Scolari, each failed to convince the Chelsea dressing room that they were the right man to lead the team to success, with Abramovich having spoken with Petr Cech, Didier Drogba and Michael Ballack before taking the decision to relieve the Brazilian of his duties back in February.
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