Tactics
“As we say in Portugal, they brought the bus and they left the bus in front of the goal.”
— After a 0-0 against Tottenham – the birth of 'parking the bus', 2004
“It was the most beautiful defeat of my life.”
— Inter, after reaching the Champions League final at Camp Nou with ten men, 2010
“This is football from the 19th century.”
— Chelsea, on West Ham's defensive approach, 2014
“Same coach, different players.”
— Tottenham, asked why his side kept losing leads, 2021
“Just as an example, Hegel says the truth is in the whole, it's always in the whole that you find the truth.”
— Manchester United, answering criticism at a press conference, 2018
“I think that in two years maximum a team has to be playing in the image of their coach, doing things with their eyes closed and that isn't about having people working together for years. It's about hard work and good practice sessions.”
— FC Porto, on how quickly a coach should shape a team, 2003
“I learned a lot from Bobby Robson and a great deal from Louis Van Gaal as well. Nothing was left to chance, everything was programmed in great detail.”
— Inter, before the Champions League final against Van Gaal’s Bayern, looking back on his years at Barcelona, 2010
“There are lots of poets in football but poets, they don't win many titles.”
— Manchester United, after winning the Europa League final against Ajax, 2017
“So the stats, many, many times are like an incredible piece of meat or fish but badly cooked. It doesn't tell me much.”
— Tottenham, answering criticism of his side’s low possession at Liverpool, 2020
“What I will promise is that we will not go to Manchester and play defensive football.”
— FC Porto, after beating Manchester United 2-1 in the Champions League first leg, 2004
“What we need is to not negotiate things that are non-negotiable. Commitment is mandatory.”
— Real Madrid, at his first press conference of his second spell, 2026
“The best way to respect the game is to play well, to play to win.”
— FC Porto, before the UEFA Super Cup against AC Milan, 2003
“The first half was the coach's fault; the second half was the players' fault.”
— Real Madrid, after coming from 3-1 down to win 4-3 at Roma in the Champions League, 2026
“Because for me you can only play attacking football when you have the ball. You need the ball. When the opposition has the ball you have to defend.”
— Manchester United, asked why his side attacked only when behind, 2018