It must have been hell for Mrs M

Posted Monday, April 04, 2011 by thesun.co.uk

It might not have been so relaxed in the Mourinho house over the weekend, though.

Jose lost his first home match for more than nine years as a manager on Saturday night when Real Madrid went down 1-0 to Sporting Gijon. And it made me think, how nice must that have been?

Nine years since Mrs M had to cope with her husband coming back from a home match with the hump. Bet she's forgotten what it's like.

Mind you. I'm not at all fooled by the result. I've not watched the game on TV yet and to be honest I'm not sure it'll tell me all that much.

Jose rested so many players that he's showed his hand at what his priority is this season - winning a third Champions League title with his third different club.

What an achievement that would be, you have to admit.

No Xabi Alonso, Pepe, Karim Benzema. Tuesday's team will bear no resemblance to the one that played on Saturday.

We had Tim Sherwood and Les Ferdinand there watching for us and they've told me basically the same thing. So there was no point in me spending all day Sunday worried sick about the game or rubbing my hands together because Jose's lost his first home match since 2002.

Being with the grandkids on Sunday was the best way to keep grounded, release the tension and be reminded of the really important things in life.

Marc has two daughters and three sons - I don't think he has any hobbies! Molly and Mimi, Joe, Harry and Bobby.

Joe is 10 and doesn't really like football. He likes rugby and wants to join the army. The other two are too young to know what's going on. Best way probably!

Tonight is when the atmosphere will really kick in. This is going to be a landmark game for Tottenham.

It's 2½ years since I took over eight games into the 2009 season with them bottom of the Premier League.

Now we're going to play in the quarter- finals of the Champions League at Real Madrid. And we've done it with largely the same group of players who were there when I walked in that Sunday morning to take the team against Bolton Wanderers that very afternoon.

Matches like this one don't come round very often, so we should make the most of it. We are massive underdogs and rightly so. Everyone keeps telling me to enjoy it, enjoy it.

But I won't be able to unless we play well. As a manager that's all that really concerns you. Yes, it'll be great to walk out with Tottenham at the Bernabeu Stadium. But if we let ourselves down, there's no enjoyment in that is there?

We've done our best to get the maximum out of the players we have got - and hopefully they'll respond on Tuesday night.

I've also been asked if it will be my best achievement as a manager to lead the team out there.

But I'm a grounded sort of bloke. Every step of the way in my career I've had some great moments - and they don't have to be surrounded by glitter to mean more to me.

Winning promotion with Bournemouth from the old third and fourth divisions as a young manager years ago still rates so highly with me because it was the first time the club had done it in its history.

Taking Portsmouth out of the Championship, winning the FA Cup with them.

At those times, that means everything, just as it will mean everything to me for Tottenham to play well and try to win on Tuesday night.

We get back about 3.30am on Wednesday so we'll all be pretty tired.

Mind you even if we play well and beat Madrid, at that time of the morning there's no guarantee I won't come home with the hump anyway!

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