Jose Mourinho Names Super Eagles Player That Gave Him a Tough Time Coaching

• Jose Mourinho says John Obi Mikel gave him a tough time at Chelsea
• The former Super Eagles captain was coached twice by the tactician
• Mikel and Mourinho won several trophies together including the EPL

Jose Mourinho has hinted that managing former Super Eagles captain, John Obi Mikel forced him to grow grey hairs during his two spells as Chelsea manager.

The 60-year-old had the luxury of signing the Nigerian midfielder as a teenager and groomed him to be one of the best defensive midfielders in the Premier League.

According to Soccernet, Mourinho - who coached Chelsea in two spells from 2004 to 2007 and from 2013 to 2015, confessed Mikel always gave him a tough time as he always wanted to play 'beautiful' football.

"Obi is my boy, he was a great player, but he always wanted to play fine football. He wanted to look like a fine player, he always gave me a tough time."

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Mikel stayed with the London outfit for 11 years where he won multiple titles, including two Premier League titles, four FA Cups, and the 2011/12 UEFA Champions League.

Why Jose Mourinho converted Mikel

Meanwhile, Mourinho has detailed why he needed Mikel to be a team player and not the top guy, which was one of the reasons he converted the Nigerian to a defensive midfielder, All Nigeria Soccer reports.

Mikel was a creative midfielder for the Nigerian national team but his move to Chelsea saw him moved to the defensive midfield position as an understudy to French midfielder, Claude Makelele.

Mourinho had become obsessed with defensive midfielders during his time at Stamford Bridge, having brought in the likes of Michael Essien, Mikel, Tiago Mendes, Lassana Diarra, and Nemanja Matic.

How Mikel signed for Chelsea

Sports Brief previously reported Mikel was close to joining Manchester United and was even pictured in their jersey before completing a move to Chelsea.

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Football

Fresh off his performance at the FIFA U20 World Cup in Holland in 2005, he was at Lyn Oslo in the Norwegian league when the two English clubs came calling.

The Blues won the battle for his signature and Mikel went on to have a successful career at Stamford Bridge, winning 11 trophies in his 11 years in London.