Why Jose Mourinho told Michael Essien to stop calling him daddy

Mourinho shares an incredible bond with many African players who show him enormous respect for the impact he had on their careers and lives.

Speaking on Vibe with Five podcast, the Portuguese gaffer said the players, specifically Essien, call him daddy for being a father figure in his career.

He said albeit playfully that, he sometimes had to stop Essien from referring to him as ‘daddy’ due to the closeness of their age gap.

“Every time I go to Africa I cannot walk. The guys, they love me. Even in Europe many of the African guys love me. And to be honest, I love the guys and I feel that the African player is very loyal and very pure. Many of them call me daddy and some of them are almost my age. When Essein calls me daddy, I say ‘Come on Michael, don’t call me daddy you are almost my age,” he said.

Jose Mourinho and Michael Essien share a father-and-son relationship with Essien crediting his success to Jose Mourinho.

Essien rose to fame and became the fans’ favourite at Chelsea when he played a pivotal role in their 2005-2006 Premier League triumph.

Essien, along with other African players including Didier Drogba, Salomon Kalou and John Obi-Mikel were all signed by Mourinho and contributed greatly to the manager’s success at the club.

However, among the players listed above, only Essien played under Mourinho twice at Chelsea and Real Madrid, depicting their special bond.