Mikel Obi, the former captain of the Nigerian national team, shared a story about how José Mourinho once made Mohamed Salah cry when they were both at Chelsea.
Before becoming a big star at Liverpool, Salah had a tough time playing for Chelsea after moving there from Basel in 2014.
On The Peter Crouch Podcast, Mikel told a story about a game against Norwich City. He said Mourinho was very harsh with Salah at halftime, which made the young Egyptian player cry.
Mikel described Mourinho as a great coach and a good person to talk to, but he also said Mourinho had a way of pushing players hard to get the best from them.
Sometimes, Mourinho was too tough, especially with younger players like Salah. That was just how he worked during that time.
Mikel added that Mourinho shouted at Salah in the dressing room, which made Salah cry. Then Mourinho took Salah out of the game. Unlike some coaches who might give a player a chance to fix a mistake, Mourinho didn’t let Salah go back on the field.
After leaving Chelsea, Salah rebuilt his career playing well for Fiorentina and Roma. Later, he joined Liverpool and became one of the world’s best forwards.
