Jose Mourinho has delivered a withering put-down to Iker Casillas after the former Real Madrid goalkeeper criticised him in a television interview.
Mourinho, who dropped Casillas from the Madrid starting line-up in his final season at the Bernabeu, dismissed the Spaniard’s comments as ‘an interview with someone who is at the end of his career’.
Getty – Contributor3 Porto 'keeper Iker Casillas has angered his former boss Jose Mourinho with comments in an interview
The 37-year-old, now plying his trade at Porto, accused his former boss of creating ‘moments of great tension’ at the club in an interview with Jorge Valdano’s TV channel Vamos.
Casillas said: “(Mourinho) was brought in to compete with Barcelona and brought moments of great tension, and that ‘Madridismo’ (aggressive support for Real Madrid) that I mentioned that I don’t like came out.”
He continued: “There was a limit that he went to with me that I didn’t want to go to. The third year wasn’t all good, although we won La Liga.
“It wasn’t good for him, nor for me, nor for the club. I think if it happened all over again, I would have taken the bull by the horns and faced Mourinho."
Action Images – Reuters3 Mourinho dropped goalkeeping legend Casillas while he was manager at Real Madrid
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The clash between the goalkeeper and his then manager began when Casillas was left out of the La Liga side in December 2012.
Their relationship soured further when their disagreements, along with other internal issues at the club, were leaked to the press – allegedly by Casillas himself, who was and remains the partner of sports journalist Sara Carbonero.
And now Mourinho has slammed the goalkeeper’s comments in the Portuguese sports paper Record, saying: “This interview gives the idea of being an interview with someone who is at the end of his career."
Getty – Contributor3 Casillas went on to captain Real Madrid to their 10th Champions League win in 2014
The Manchester United boss continued: “When he says he never confronted me he’s not telling the truth. He confronted me and he did it in a way in which no-one does it better than him – secretly.”
The Portuguese left Real Madrid at the end of the 2012-13 season after failing to win a trophy that year, while Casilias would captain them to their tenth Champions League win a year later.
He joined Porto in 2015 and despite not having played for the national side for more than two years, is still hopeful of a recall to the Spanish squad.