DATE OF BIRTH: January 26, 1963
NATIONALITY: Portuguese

MANAGERIAL CAREER:
June 2004 Chelsea
2002-04 FC Porto
2001-02 Uniao de Leiria
2000 Benfica

HONOURS
All with Porto
European Cup 2004
Uefa Cup 2003
Portuguese league champions 2003, 04
Portuguese cup 2003

If the arrival to Stamford Bridge of Roman Abramovich left Chelsea supporters hungry for success, Jose Mourinho was the man who duly served it. Arriving in London in June 2004 after the protracted dismissal of Claudio Ranieri, Mourinho was fresh from guiding unheralded Porto to the European Cup and in no doubt of own ability. "I am a special manager, because I have won the Champions League," he said.

It is arguable whether any degree of success will be enough for Mourinho, who won five major trophies in his first four years as a manager. He won the treble in his first full season at Porto - adding the Uefa Cup to the domestic league and cup - and a 3-0 win over Monaco the following May claimed Europe's top prize.

It was an early peak in a career geared solely towards coaching. Despite being the son of Felix Mourinho, the former Portugal goalkeeper, Jose never played professionally and found his first high-level employment in the game at the age of 29 when he was appointed as a translator for Bobby Robson at Sporting Lisbon. He soon became a coach in the Portuguese capital and followed the former England manager to Barcelona in 1996, now officially an assistant coach. After Robson left in 1997, Mourinho remained with the Catalan club and served a further three years under Louis van Gaal.

His first head coach's job was something of a false start, though, as Mourinho resigned from Benfica just nine matches into the 2000 season after falling out with the board. The following January, he took the reins at little-known Uniao de Leiria and was quickly back into his stride, guiding them to the top five by the midpoint of the 2001-02 season. He jumped ship when Porto came calling in January 2002, and the team finished the season in third place despite a poor start.

The next two seasons at Porto were the most successful in the club's history and Mourinho was always likely to attract the attention of Europe's big-guns - or those aiming to join the elite. Chelsea had made little secret that they were seeking a manager with sufficient ambition and aptitude to translate Roman Abramovich's millions into silverware, and Mourinho was heading for West London before the European Cup had even completed its journey to Portugal.

Forthright and outspoken, Mourinho has brought to Chelsea much of what was missing under Ranieri: confidence, know-how and the league title.
- Howard Swains