Iker Casillas' life at Real Madrid changed during a league game against Valencia in 2013, when an injury to his hand ended up with him being sent to the bench by Jose Mourinho. Ever since then, Casillas has not been able to recover his place as one of the best goalies in the world, and tomorrow's matchup against Chelsea might give him a chance for some payback against his former manager.
During their complicated relationship, Casillas played 136 games under Mourinho, allowing 118 goals in all competitions for Los Blancos. In fact, his form was questioned heavily by the Portuguese boss, since some of his performances were key to Real Madrid's shaky form during his final season with Los Merengues. This led to Casillas' substitution in December 17th against Betis, and ended up with Mourinho's statement about how he preferred to start Diego Lopez instead of Casillas, even revealing that the shot-stopper from Móstoles would not play any game for Real Madrid as long as he was their coach.
Casillas and Mourinho, celebrating the 2011-2012 La Liga title with Los Blancos.
Although the origins of Mourinho's quarrel with Casillas were never officially revealed, sources indicate that Mourinho was infuriated by a phone call the goalkeeper held with Xavi Hernández, with the intention of stopping the violence between Barcelona and Real Madrid. Other media outlets revealed Mourinho was not happy with Iker giving confidential information to his journalist girlfriend Sara Carbonero, who had no problem revealing inside stuff from Real Madrid's locker room on a TV show.
Casillas' life after Real Madrid
The Spanish goalkeeper joined FC Porto during this transfer window, where his work ethics and experience have made fans ecstatic. In his short stint as the Dragons' starting goalkeeper, Casillas has played six games, keeping three clean sheets in the process. Nevertheless, his latest Champions League start against Dinamo Kiyv ended up with a 2-2 draw, with some members of the Portuguese media blaming him for the game's equalizer in stoppage time.
Mourinho's life after Real Madrid
The Portuguese boss returned to the Premier League in the 2013-2014 season, leading Chelsea to the Champions League semi-finals in which the team lost against Atletico Madrid. Last year, "The Happy One" (the nickname Mourinho coined for himself after re-joining Chelsea) Chelsea managed to win the Premier League title and the Capital One Cup, although the Blues had an early exit from the European tournament, after being eliminated in the Round of 16 by Paris Saint-Germain.
Mourinho's return to the Estadio Do Dragao will come one day after the club celebrates its 122nd "birthday". "The Special One" will try to win his fifth away Champions League game as Chelsea's coach since he returned to the team's dugout in 2013, making his second appearance in his home country after last year's 1-0 win over Sporting CP.
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