Mourinho ends Kenyan tour

Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho is raring to take up his new coaching duties at Spain’s richest club after he and his family ended a three-week holiday in Kenya.

The heavily guarded family arrived at the South Coast’s Ukunda airstrip in a convoy of five vehicles shortly after 5pm on Saturday and boarded a chartered plane, which took off immediately.

Despite successfully dodging journalists for most of his stay in Kenya, the Daily Nation finally got an opportunity for a one-on-one interview with the “special one” last Thursday on the Diani beach.

Eagle-eyed

However, we had to contend with his eagle-eyed personal bodyguards and two other minders from the Almanara Diani beach resort before the self-proclaimed “special one” agreed to an interview.

“Ok, gentlemen, what do you want from me? Come for an interview, but I do not want to be photographed,” a bare-chested Mourinho, dressed only in blue shorts, stressed before walking some distance from his bodyguards for the interview.   

Mourinho said he had enjoyed his holiday and was ready to tackle his new job at Real Madrid on Thursday. He said he hoped to be reunited with Brazilian defender Douglas Macon from his former club, Inter Milan, once a transfer deal was reached.

Mourinho said he was prepared to regain Real Madrid’s lost glory. “I won the European Champions League last season with Inter Milan, the English championship with Chelsea and I expect to do the same at Real Madrid,” he declared.

He praised Kenyan McDonald Mariga, saying he expected “good football” from him. “Mariga is in the class of Michael Essen and Samuel Eto’o and I expect him to improve greatly,” he said.