'A little Magpie' - why Mourinho 'loves' Newcastle

Mark Robson was understandably a small tense arsenic he boarded nan formation location from Madrid.

Sir Bobby Robson's boy had a precious portion of manus luggage he needed to get backmost successful 1 portion - a Ballon d'Or world coach of nan twelvemonth award.

The gong was donated by Jose Mourinho for a kindness auction successful nan sanction of his precocious mentor successful 2011.

It went connected to thief raise £26,000 for nan Sir Bobby Robson Foundation, which intends to find much effective ways to observe and dainty cancer.

And nan family person ne'er forgotten nan gesture.

"It was incredibly thoughtful of Jose to do that," Mark said. "It shows you what he is for illustration heavy down."

It besides illustrates nan lasting affection Mourinho has for Sir Bobby, who he shadowed arsenic an expert and adjunct for 5 years successful nan 1990s, arsenic nan Portuguese prepares to return his Benfica broadside to St James' Park.

Make nary mistake, Mourinho will beryllium hopeless to grounds conscionable his 4th triumph connected Tyneside erstwhile his squad look Newcastle United successful nan Champions League connected Tuesday night.

But this will still beryllium an juncture laced pinch emotion arsenic he returns to "Mr Robson's home" and makes his measurement past nan bust of nan erstwhile Newcastle head successful nan players' entrance.

So really was this adjacent enslaved forged?

This was a clip agelong earlier nan 'Special One' moniker.

In fact, it was Sir Bobby, alternatively than Mourinho, who was mobbed arsenic he made his measurement done arrivals successful 1992.

The erstwhile England head had conscionable touched down successful Lisbon to return complaint of Sporting and nine president Sousa Cintra was location to shake hands him.

However, nan Portuguese did not speak English truthful he brought polyglot Mourinho along.

Mourinho had been recommended by Sporting adjunct Manuel Fernandes, who had antecedently worked pinch nan budding coach astatine Vitoria de Setubal and Estrela da Amadora.

It was a infinitesimal that changed nan people of Mourinho's life.

Mourinho stood alongside Sir Bobby connected nan training ground. He helped get his connection crossed to nan players and successful nan media and moreover accompanied him successful meetings pinch nan hierarchy.

The brace were thrown together, pinch a 30-year property gap, but it was quickly evident to Sporting defender Stan Valckx that they made a "good couple".

"During nan squad talk earlier nan game, Bobby said for a fewer minutes to explicate thing and, then, Mourinho translated it into Portuguese," he said. "It took 10 minutes pinch galore emotions successful what he was saying.

"It was evident that he was overmuch much than an interpreter. He was very loyal and very ambitious. He was a large thief for Bobby.

"Sometimes he did exercises connected nan transportation and videos for illustration what an adjunct coach does. In those years, 90% of nan Portuguese players didn't speak English truthful location was a batch of work. Mourinho was very busy. Let's opportunity it for illustration that."

It was done Mourinho that Sir Bobby would later study he had been sacked.

Sporting whitethorn person been apical of nan convention successful December 1993, but Cintra grabbed nan intercom to make a melodramatic announcement connected nan squad formation backmost from Austria.

The nine president announced successful his autochthonal lingua that Sir Bobby would beryllium dismissed pursuing his side's elimination from nan Uefa Cup astatine nan hands of Casino Salzburg.

Yet it was not nan extremity of Sir Bobby and Mourinho's partnership.

Sir Bobby consulted Mourinho erstwhile he was offered nan Porto occupation a twelvemonth aliases truthful later and, tellingly, took his adjunct pinch him.

"If thing was said down dad's back, Jose was watching," Mark Robson said.

"He was his eyes and ears, and a sounding board. You request a right-hand [man] successful those environments and [Mourinho] was that man.

"Because he was specified a beardown characteristic - moreover astatine that property - he could grip it and do it softly and efficiently.

"If location were immoderate disruptors, Jose would spot them and dada could woody pinch it. It evidently worked good - nan impervious is successful nan pudding."

Sir Bobby went connected to triumph 5 trophies astatine Porto, including 2 convention titles, earlier Barcelona came calling successful 1996.

And location was 1 peculiar personnel of unit he was wished to return pinch him.

Those astatine nan apical astatine Barcelona initially wanted personification pinch nine connections to beryllium Sir Bobby's assistant, but he insisted it had to beryllium Mourinho.

For bully reason.

Sir Bobby was stepping into a divided nine pursuing nan departure of legendary head Johan Cruyff and needed personification he trusted implicitly, who could thief get his connection crossed successful different overseas language.

By this stage, Mourinho's domiciled had agelong since evolved.

He helped retired connected nan training ground. He produced scouting dossiers connected nan guidance that Sir Bobby rated arsenic nan champion he had ever seen. Crucially, he was utilized to dealing pinch world players.

In a testing environment, nan brace complemented each different erstwhile again arsenic midfielder Guillermo Amor explained.

"They managed to create a bully ambiance and make a very beardown team," he said.

"Jose had much interaction pinch nan players owed to his fluency successful nan connection and his age, which was very akin to ours.

"He had awesome respect for Bobby and Bobby had awesome religion successful everything Jose could do connected nan section and successful nan locker room."

Sir Bobby went connected to triumph nan European Cup Winners' Cup, nan Copa Del Rey and nan Spanish Cup successful what proved to beryllium his last play pinch Mourinho earlier nan Barcelona head was moved upstairs to nan position of wide head and replaced by Louis van Gaal.

Mourinho told Sir Bobby he wanted to time off retired of loyalty but his mentor convinced him to stay, having already briefed van Gaal astir nan merits of keeping his assistant.

Had Mourinho not spent 3 further 3 years astatine nan Nou Camp nether van Gaal, nan Portuguese could good person followed Sir Bobby to Newcastle successful 1999.

Instead he went it unsocial - but Sir Bobby's power lives on.

To this day, Mourinho cherishes those moments nan pair's families shared successful Sitges, nan meals Sir Bobby ne'er fto him salary for and nan lessons he taught him astir life.

It is why nan 62-year-old considers himself a "little Magpie".

"The nine up location cognize really overmuch emotion and respect I person for them," he told CBS earlier this month. "I learned that emotion from Mr Robson."