Tottenham boss Mourinho slams old nemesis Conte over Inter's Eriksen pursuit

The Spurs manager didn't hide his feelings when asked about representatives of the Serie A club speaking openly about their attempts to sign the Dane

Posted Saturday, January 18, 2020 by Goal.com

Jose Mourinho has reignited his long-running feud with Antonio Conte as Inter continue their pursuit of Tottenham star Christian Eriksen.

Mourinho and Conte have traded blows in the past when the former was managing Manchester United and the latter was in charge at Chelsea.

Current Inter manager Conte has described Tottenham boss Mourinho as "fake" and a "little man" after the Portuguese brought up old match-fixing charges against the Italian.

Mourinho's current issue with Conte involves Eriksen, who appears certain to leave Spurs either in January or in the summer when his contract expires.

Conte has spoken openly about his club's pursuit of the Danish star, which has not gone down well with Eriksen's current manager.

When asked which representative of Inter had been speaking about Eriksen's future, Mourinho did not hesitate to call out his old nemesis by name.

“I think Antonio, I think Antonio,” he said. “I think it was publicly. He is very positive that Eriksen is coming to Inter.

“We shouldn’t speak about players from other clubs until they become our players. You ask me about Gedson [Fernandes, Spurs’ new signing from Benfica] since the moment Gedson’s name was on the screen and I told you nothing [until he signed].

"You protect everybody. Is it a question of respect? I don’t want to give you a headline. That’s up to you.

“If Inter are confident, they are confident because they are ready to make us an offer, which didn’t happen yet.

"So when I see people speaking, especially people with responsibilities, I am a little bit surprised.”

Mourinho managed Inter between 2008 and 2010, leading the Serie A side to a treble in his final season in charge. However, the 56-year-old has distanced himself from those running the club currently, though he was quick to express his admiration for the club as a whole and its fans.

“This is not my Inter,” he said. “I have no connections with the people [running the club] so I think it’s nothing to do with that.

"Nothing can change my feeling with Inter. It’s not a situation with a player that is going to change my feeling with the club and the fans. No chance.”