Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho was bizarrely handed a sprinkler by a journalist at a press conference ahead of his side’s Champions League tie with Inter Milan.
Mourinho returned to the Bernabeu for a second spell this summer, 13 years after his first stint ended.
His initial arrival at Real in 2010 followed a hugely impressive two years with Inter, where Mourinho led them to the Champions League title in the 2009-10 season.
And, ahead of Mourinho coming up against the Italian side in his first European game since coming back to his former club, Italian reporter Tancredi Palmeri gave the Special One a reminder of one of his most iconic nights at Inter.
During the aforementioned successful European run, they beat Barcelona 3-2 on aggregate in the semi-finals.
Following the second leg of that tie – which Inter lost 1-0 – Mourinho famously celebrated by sprinting across the Nou Camp with his arms in the air before he joined his team for further festivities on the pitch.
Jose Mourinho was handed a sprinkler by a journalist ahead of Real Madrid vs Inter Milan
Mourinho celebrates after Inter’s semi-final victory over Barcelona in the 2009-10 season
As they celebrated, the sprinklers were turned on, yet Inter’s players continued to enjoy themselves despite being soaked in a moment that has become hugely iconic in the competition’s history.
As Palmeri handed Mourinho the sprinkler, which was wrapped in a blue ribbon, to remind him of that night, the Portuguese coach shook hands with the reporter and appeared to be amused at the gift.
Palmeri had earlier said on TV: ‘The mission is very difficult, almost impossible, to get a gift to Mourinho. It’s difficult, but we’ll try.’
He eventually gave Mourinho the sprinkler at the end of the press conference.
During the semi-final tie 16 years ago, Inter produced a defensive masterclass to only concede once against Lionel Messi and Co to secure their spot in the final, where they went on to beat Bayern Munich 2-0.
Reflecting on that memorable night years later in 2019, Mourinho shared the secrets behind it.
‘There was a combination of ideas, but basically everything was around not letting Messi play,’ he told the Coaches’ Voice in 2019.
‘In Italy they were using the word “Gabbia”. I think the real translation is like a jail for Messi.
‘Because in the end we didn’t play man-to-man, but (Javier) Zanetti, (Thiago) Motta, (Esteban) Cambiasso, everybody was responsible for any position that Messi could go.’
