Jose Mourinho decided to substitute his goalkeeper before Zlatan Ibrahimovic during a game - because he thought the forward was not trying hard enough.
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The duo were at Inter Milan together in 2009 and they entertained Siena a day after being confirmed Serie A champions.
Ibrahimovic asked to be taken off throughout the contest, but Mourinho was not convinced the Swede was up for the fight.
He watched Luis Figo and Mario Balotelli depart for Davide Santon and Mancini respectively, while cutting a frustrated figure.
Figuring he may as well have a go, Ibrahimovic scored and again glanced to the bench.
When Zlatan Ibrahimović asked José Mourinho to be subbed off and didn't gave his best on the pitch because he felt tired.
— IM (@Iconic_Mourinho) July 10, 2022
Mourinho replied by purposely subbing off 3 other players, including the goalkeeper Julio Cesar.pic.twitter.com/ZRSAOzE9ND
What awaited his gaze was second choice goalkeeper Paolo Orlandoni replacing Julio Cesar, meaning he had to play a full 90 minutes.
Mourinho's instincts paid off however as Ibrahimovic won the Golden Boot by a single goal at the end of May.
The Portuguese coach addressed the incident in 2014 and said he left Ibrahimovic on because his teammates were not helping him score.
Per Sky Sports he explained: "He was very angry and upset as he came at me. He was shouting, 'We are champions, I helped a lot to make you champions, now nobody's helping me. I want to [come off] now'.
"But I pretended not to understand him. I said, 'What? What? Do you want a drink, do you want some water?' and I threw him a bottle. I told him, 'Here, take a drink and go'. A few minutes later he scored a beautiful goal."
The pair would work together again at Manchester United seven years later and Mourinho admits he has a special bond with the 40-year-old.
He said: "A player who gave me as much as Ibra will always be in my heart. He did a lot for Inter and Inter did a lot for him. I like seeing Ibra.
"I greet him whenever I get the chance to and I wish him all the best - except when he plays against me. He is very special, he is one of the best strikers in the world."
Ibrahimovic is currently playing for Inter's bitter rivals AC Milan in his second stint and won Serie A last season.
Meanwhile, Mourinho is back in Italy with Roma and guided them to Europa Conference League glory in May.
Featured Image Credit: Serie A
Topics: Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Jose Mourinho, Inter Milan, Serie A
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