Brian Clough is perhaps the man most synonymous with Nottingham Forest, with legends of the game continuously heaping plaudits on the former coach’s achievements.
Almost everything at Forest comes back to Clough, emphasising his status as a Forest legend given how much he is still talked about in reference to modern-day football.
Ange Postecoglou hailed Clough’s influence on his own coaching when the Australian first arrived in the Premier League, whilst Gary Neville even referenced Clough when discussing Forest’s PSR breach which highlights how any discussion on the club can find its way back to the Middlesbrough man.
It’s understandable why Clough holds such a vice on wider Forest discourse given how much he achieved as manager of the club. Jamie Carragher named Clough’s European cups as British Football’s greatest achievement which is hard to argue with as no British team has defended their European crown since.
Such an achievement meant that Clough has had a major influence on the careers of plenty of managers even to this day, but iconic head coach Jose Mourinho couldn’t believe what Clough had done at Forest upon first visiting Nottingham.
Jose Mourinho had no idea about Brian Clough’s Nottingham Forest success
Mourinho, who is currently coaching in Turkey with Fenerbahce, has been tasked with writing the forward of the new book on Clough, I Believe in Miracles.
Whilst the Portuguese manager may be an admirer of Clough now, Mourinho admitted that he had little idea about what the legendary manager had achieved upon his first visit to Nottingham.
Recounting his visit to the city in 1996, Mourinho said: “I walked all the way [around the city] and when I saw the stadium I thought: ‘Are you kidding me, this club won the European Cup? Twice?'”
“It was a nice stadium and a nice city, but it was a small place. It was the size of the stadium that really took me aback. A small stadium, a small crowd, I looked around and tried to take it in.”
Very little has changed since then as while the City Ground is due for redevelopment in 2026, the famous old stadium remains as it was when Mourinho visited as well as when Clough was bringing home trophies.
Big characters seem to be attracted to the former Forest coach’s methods as Roy Keane credited Clough for helping him settle in England. Mourinho has a similarly larger-than-life character to Clough, which he believes has seen the two garner similarities.
Jose Mourinho has similar traits to Brian Clough
Having also won the top European trophy twice as a manager, Mourinho is already linked with Clough in some ways, but the ex-Chelsea boss admitted there are more similarities.
He said: “A lot of people say we have similarities and there are certainly coincidences. I have huge respect for what they [Forest] did. I think if Brian Clough was around today, we would get on.”
Mourinho was keen to make certain that Clough’s managerial abilities received as much praise as his character, though, saying: “He had all that self-esteem and big self-belief. He was very confident about himself, and from what I know about him he was very comfortable with the attention.
“Maybe because Brian Clough was such a huge personality, with so much charisma, everyone remembers his quotes and the stories and a few people forget his talents. He didn’t win two European Cups with Nottingham Forest just because of his charisma.
“History cannot delete what he and Nottingham Forest did. Their results, the cups, the achievements, absolutely unbelievable achievements.”
Clough will forever be remembered in Forest history for what he achieved at the club, but the credit he receives from fellow coaches is equally special.
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