Jose Mourinho on Arsene Wenger: 'If you walk in the street you are not obliged to say hello or shake their hand'

Blues boss attempts to halt handshake drama, stokes it further

Samuel Stevens
Wednesday 05 August 2015 15:18 BST
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(Getty)

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Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho believes bosses should not be obliged to shake hands with their counterparts after matches in the Premier League.

The Portuguese refrained from shaking Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger's hand following the 1-0 defeat in the Community Shield on Sunday, despite waiting to greet his opposite number's players as they returned to the pitch after collecting their medals.

Mourinho welcomes a new new crackdown on poor behaviour from managers on the touchline but couldn't resist citing the unsavoury incident from last season which saw Wenger push the former Inter Milan boss on the sidelines.

"I agree totally with the new measures," he told Sky Sports at an open day organised by the Premier League to herald in the new season.

Wenger and Mourinho square-up to each other last season
Wenger and Mourinho square-up to each other last season (Getty Images)

"I was last season without one single incident with the fourth official and I agree with behaviour being respectable in the technical area. It is quite frustrating for a manager to be pushed in his technical area and to see the opposite manager stay in his position, not being punished, so I agree totally with that."

When asked directly about his reluctance to even acknowledge Wenger's presence at Wembley at the weekend, Mourinho suggested it was a non-issue.

"I don't want to make a story of it. If you walk in the street you are not obliged to say hello or shake your hand with anyone.

“In a sport team or institution, the history is a bit different. In the Community Shield, I thought about my club and players and the winners and the place I was.

"Wembley is the last place you don't behave properly, I don't think a manager has to shake hands with another one if he doesn't want to."

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