Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho was handed a sprinkler by a journalist during a press conference before his side’s Champions League meeting with Inter Milan, in a playful reminder of one of his most memorable nights in European football.
Mourinho returned to the Bernabeu for a second spell this summer, 13 years after his first period in charge of the Spanish club came to an end.
His original appointment at Real Madrid in 2010 followed two highly successful seasons with Inter. During that time, he guided the Italian side to the Champions League title in the 2009-10 campaign.
The upcoming match against Inter was set to be Mourinho’s first European game since returning to Real Madrid. Ahead of the fixture, Italian journalist Tancredi Palmeri decided to mark the occasion with a reference to the Portuguese manager’s celebrated time in Milan.
Palmeri gave Mourinho a sprinkler wrapped in a blue ribbon, recalling the dramatic celebrations that followed Inter’s Champions League semi-final against Barcelona.
Inter won that tie 3-2 on aggregate, despite losing the second leg 1-0. After the match, Mourinho famously ran across the Nou Camp with his arms raised before rejoining his players on the pitch.
The celebrations continued as the stadium sprinklers were switched on. Inter’s players carried on celebrating in the rain, becoming soaked in scenes that have since become one of the most recognisable images in Champions League history.
Mourinho appeared amused when Palmeri presented him with the unusual gift. The manager shook hands with the reporter as he accepted the sprinkler, which was handed over at the end of the press conference.
Palmeri had previewed the stunt on television, saying: ‘The mission is very difficult, almost impossible, to get a gift to Mourinho. It’s difficult, but we’ll try.’
The semi-final victory over Barcelona was built on an outstanding defensive performance from Inter. They conceded only once across the two legs while dealing with the threat posed by Lionel Messi and his team-mates.
Inter went on to beat Bayern Munich 2-0 in the final and secure the club’s third European Cup.
Mourinho later explained how his team had managed to contain Barcelona’s attacking threat. Speaking to the Coaches’ Voice in 2019, he said the plan had been based largely on preventing Messi from influencing the game.
‘There was a combination of ideas, but basically everything was around not letting Messi play,’ he told the Coaches’ Voice in 2019.
‘In Italy they were using the word “Gabbia”. I think the real translation is like a jail for Messi.
‘Because in the end we didn’t play man-to-man, but (Javier) Zanetti, (Thiago) Motta, (Esteban) Cambiasso, everybody was responsible for any position that Messi could go.’
The sprinkler gift therefore served as a light-hearted reminder of the tactical success and unforgettable celebrations that defined Mourinho’s Champions League triumph with Inter.
