Mourinho’s mind games: 'We Won 3-2'
In the Portuguese League, Benfica drew 2-2 with Braga, but following a controversial late-game incident, head coach Jose Mourinho declared his team the victors. Mourinho’s insistence on behaving as if they had actually won led to some truly bizarre moments after the final whistle. Here are the details…
Benfica and Braga shared the points in a 2-2 draw. However, speaking after the match, Benfica Technical Director Jose Mourinho drew widespread attention by reacting with the claim, "We won 3-2."
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Red card in the 90+4th minute
The scoring opened in the 29th minute with a goal from Nicolas Otamendi. By the 38th minute, Rodrigo Zalazar leveled the score from the penalty spot. In the closing moments of the first half, the hosts, Braga, took a 2-1 lead through P. Victor. After the first half concluded with that scoreline, Fredrik Aursnes found the equalizer for Benfica in the 53rd minute. Despite Benfica's intense efforts to find a winner, the match ended 2-2. In the 90+4th minute, Braga's Ricardo Horta was sent off with a red card.
Controversial decision
In the 76th minute, Benfica first appealed for a penalty. As play continued, they managed to put the ball in the net, but the goal was disallowed due to a foul. The prior penalty shout was reviewed by VAR, which ultimately decided not to award the spot-kick.
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During the incident, Aursnes crossed the ball from the right side of the box, and the ball struck Arrey-Mbi's hand. The referee ruled against a penalty, citing the close proximity of the player.
"We won 3-2"
Speaking after the clash, Mourinho made the following remarks:
"This is a great victory. Braga was better than us in the first half, but we asserted our dominance shortly after. We scored from a set piece. In the second half, Braga didn't exist; there was only Benfica. The players took responsibility and turned the result around. Winning 3-2 here is a massive result for us. We won 3-2."
"The goal is valid"
Mourinho continued to insist on the victory, saying:
"I watched our third goal from the bench. I had doubts about the distance, so I watched it over and over again on the VAR monitor. The goal is valid; this is a great victory. We won, we won, we won."
