Materazzi worked under Mourinho from 2008 to 2010 during the Portuguese’s time as Inter Mian’s head coach.
Mourinho built a formidable team in Italy which won a lot of trophies including a treble in 2010. The rapport between Materazzi and the Portuguese coach remains strong even after a decade.
“Mourinho was a shield, a friend, a father and a brother. He’d tear us to shreds, too, really gave us a dressing down. He knew the right buttons to press and you saw the results,” the 46-year-old said in a live video on Instagram.
“I basically stopped playing football with him, as the rapport we had was one of trust and respect. I knew that I might only need to play one game, but he would respect me just as much.”
“Consistency was the most important thing and he was consistent. He did what he said he would. People say I was angry with the one that followed him (Rafa Benitez), but we didn’t get along because he wasn’t consistent.
“It’s difficult to follow Mourinho, but Leonardo was really intelligent in that he basically copied and pasted what Mou had done. Once he arrived, we recovered 19 points from Milan, and if we hadn’t lost the derby in April, we would’ve overtaken them.”
