Christian Eriksen's true feelings on Jose Mourinho crystal clear after hasty Tottenham exit

Former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Christian Eriksen has insisted he has a lot of respect for his ex-manager Jose Mourinho despite his hasty exit from North London in 2020.

Mourinho was appointed the new manager of Tottenham in November 2019 and by the end of January 2020, Eriksen had departed the club for a new challenge at Inter. The Dane racked up a highly respectable 305 appearances for Spurs during his six and a half year stint at Tottenham and many fans were disappointed to see him leave when he felt the time was right to move on.

Discussing his departure in a press conference, Mourinho said: "We knew it for a long time. We didn't reveal it because we had respect for him and I knew it the first day I came here, he told me he won't sign the new contract.

"So, it was a situation that I left in the hands of Mr Levy to manage. For me, it is more important to have players who want to play for this club and that is important."

While Mourinho may have handled Eriksen's exit frostily, the midfielder has shown no ill-will towards the former Tottenham and Chelsea boss ahead of tonight's meeting between the pair's current clubs, Fenerbahce and Manchester United, in the Europa League. Speaking to TNT Sports about the prospect of facing Mourinho, Eriksen said: "He has a few old teams. He has a long and very respected career, so hats off.

"But he’s still Mourinho... so it’s special to play against him. He is a massive, massive name in the football world and what he’s achieved as a manager is incredible."

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