Portuguese coach Jose Mourinho described his compatriot and Super Eagles handler, Jose Peseiro, as his best friend, PRIMANEWS Sports Extra reports.
The former AS Roma coach was touted as the one who recommended Peseiro to the Nigeria Football Federation, and ahead of Sunday’s Africa Cup of Nations final against hosts Ivory Coast, Mourinho sent some goodwill messages to his compatriot.
“My best friend in football is in the final. The Nigerian coach is my best friend. We grew up together. We studied together. We went to university on the same day. We spent five years together every day. We left at the same time,” Mourinho told football.com.
“He’s probably my biggest friend in football. And for him, it’s a huge opportunity to make history because never has a Portuguese coach won the African cup.”
Since taking over the Eagles job in 2022, Peseiro has been a subject of criticism from Nigerians but the 63-year-old has turned the narrative around at the AFCON, leading the Eagles to the final.
Peseiro’s men started their journey with a drab 1-1 draw against Equatorial Guinea before beating Ivory Coast and Guinea-Bissau 1-0 each. In the round of 16, Nigeria got the better of arch rivals Cameroon 2-0 before beating Angola 1-0 in the last eight.
In what was their toughest game before the final, Peseiro’s men required a 4-2 penalty shootout win over South Africa after 120 minutes of football ended 1-1.
Before the AFCON, some fans also called for Mourinho to replace Peseiro as Nigeria’s coach after the former Chelsea manager was sacked by Roma.
Although Peseiro’s contract was extended for another year by the NFF in 2023, with a clause to reach at least the semi-finals of the AFCON, it remains to be seen if he will remain on the job in the near future.
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