Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has claimed to have had a mole in Arsenal’s dressing room who would send him secret text messages criticizing Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger during Mourinho’s time as Chelsea boss in the 2014-15 season.
Following Arsenal’s impressive 2-0 victory at Manchester City in January 2015, Mourinho, 53, told journalist Rob Beasley: “[One of the Arsenal players] sent me an SMS to say players did themselves, organized themselves during the week. Wenger did nothing.”
When asked by Beasley whether this information was accurate, the Portuguese manager reportedly insisted it was “100 percent.”
Wenger, Arsenal’s manager, was praised for his team’s– nicknamed The Gunners– disciplined performance at the Etihad Stadium.
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In the new book Jose Mourinho: Up Close and Personal, Beasley has revealed some of the details of Mourinho’s long-running rivalry with Wenger.
Chelsea eventually became the champions that year, with Arsenal finishing third in the Premier League, 13 points behind Mourinho’s side.
Mourinho’s claim that he was in contact with this unnamed Arsenal player follows his threat to ‘break Wenger’s face,’ which is also mentioned in Beasley’s book.
The Portuguese was reportedly angered by Wenger questioning the fairness of Chelsea only selling Spanish midfielder Juan Mata to Man U after the two clubs had played each other twice in the league.
Mourinho told Beasley his full threat: “When Mr Wenger criticizes Chelsea and Manchester United over the deal with Mata… I will find him one day outside a football pitch and I will break his face.”
But Wenger, whose side play Chelsea on Saturday, coolly said: “I have no personal problem with anybody. I respect everybody in our game and I don’t feel I comment a lot on other teams.
“Sometimes I just say what i think, but that is part of the way I am.”
The Frenchman, who celebrates 20 years as Arsenal’s boss next week, added: “I’m not in a destructive mode, ever. I’m more constructive and I cannot comment on that because I’m focused on tomorrow’s game and how we want to play football.”
WIGAN, ENGLAND – JULY 16: Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho looks on during the pre season friendly match between Wigan Athletic and Manchester United at the JJB Stadium on July 16, 2016 in Wigan, England. (Photo by Chris Brunskill/Getty Images)
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