I learned a lot from Professor Mourinho, admits Clement
PAUL CLEMENT intends to take Jose Mourinho to school today and prove he learned well from his former master.
A decade ago, Clement was an eager 35-year-old and had just moved from Fulham to become youth coach at Chelsea, where Mourinho ruled the roost.
Ten years on, the Swansea City boss takes his team to Old Trafford to face Mourinho’s Manchester United for the first time as managerial equals.
“He was the professor and I was the student,” said Clement, of their five months together at Stamford Bridge before Mourinho left the first time.
“I was definitely in awe of him. You were never quite sure where you stood with him, either.
“He created a distance between people. He was very strong on the psychological side, on managing people – both players and staff. He really kept you on your toes. “It’s not until you actually get to stand on the side of the pitch that you can see what he is like as a coach. “I learned how to organise training, how to run training, how to get maximum use out of every moment, how to get players fit through football training and not running. “It’s something I’ve taken forward from that moment. I saw a real high-level coach – intense, competitive, organised, maximising use of time, very stimulating for players – activity, activity, physical, mental, it was really impressive.” But now the teaching needs to pay off for Swansea, who are locked in a grim battle for Premier League survival and who probably need three victories from their last four games.