Story By: Juan Mayes, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Golder’s News And Sport
Real Madrid midfielder Casemiro has said he felt “like the best defensive midfielder in the world” after an intimate chat with Tottenham Hotspur boss Jose Mourinho saying the Portuguese boss “is not just any person.”
The comments came from Brazilian international Casemiro, 27, during an interview with Spanish magazine ‘Libero’.
The midfielder shared a conversation he had with the then-Real Madrid boss Mourinho, 56, on the day he made his full debut for the Spanish club giants.
Casemiro said he went to Mourinho’s office after he was called while the squad were having breakfast. In his office, he saw a board with his name indicating he was chosen to be a starter for the day’s match.
The Real Madrid superstar said: “He (Mourinho) asked me, do you know what that means?’ I said ‘yeah, it has my name on it.’
“Then he told me ‘You are starting today’. I remember he said: ‘Listen, Case, I know you, I know how you play. Go after your first ball with everything you have.
“Fans in the Bernabeu like to see that. For a player to transmit from the pitch and to play with his heart. Listen, I know you, play a 70-metre ball too, the fans in the Bernabeu like that.’”
The midfielder, seemingly inspired by the pep talk, said: “When I left that room, I swear I felt like the best defensive midfielder in the world after what Mou told me.
“I mean it is Mourinho who was talking to me, he is not just any person.”
The match in question was on 20th April of 2013 against Real Betis in La Liga. Casemiro impressed in Real Madrid’s 3-1 victory.
The Brazilian international went on to say: “I remember I did what he asked on the pitch. I lobbed a long pass to Cristiano in the first 15 minutes.
“He (Mourinho) came to speak to me after the match and said ‘see how I know you. Congratulations. You did what I asked and you played the match very well.’”
Casemiro ended by saying his performance helped him get picked to start Real Madrid’s following match too.
The defensive midfielder has been at Real Madrid since 2013 and has helped the club win La Liga in 2017 and four Champions League titles.
Mourinho’s final year in Real Madrid was in 2013 before he made his move back to Chelsea.
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