Jose Mourinho reveals 'laundry basket' incident - and how he nearly suffocated!

The former Manchester United manager, Jose Mourinho says he nearly suffocated when he hid in a basket in order to avoid a UEFA ban in 2005. 

Jose Mourinho has revealed the truth about the infamous 2005 incident when he hid in a laundry basket so he could give a Chelsea teamtalk.

In the Portuguese first season as Chelsea manager, Mourinho served a touchline ban by UEFA for comments he made about referee Anders Frisk during the Champions League last-16 victory over Barcelona. 

That implied that Mourinho was banned from entering the dressing room for both legs of the quarter-final fixture against Bayern Munich, and led to Mourinho cooking up a plan with the club's kit man to ensure that he could talk to his players.

However, it was almost a plan that went badly wrong!

Mourinho told beIN SPORTS: "I go to the dressing room during the day so I was there from midday and the game is seven o'clock. I just want to be in the dressing room when the players arrive.”

"I went there and nobody saw me. The problem was to leave after. And Stewart Bannister the kit man put me in the basket. It was a little bit open so I could breathe.”

“But when he is taking it outside the dressing room, the UEFA guys were following and desperate to find me so he closed the box and I couldn't breathe!”

“When he opened the box I was dying! I am serious! I was claustrophobic, I promise! It's true!"

Fortunately, Chelsea won the tie and progressed to the semi-finals, where they lost to Liverpool. 

The club denied claims that Mourinho had broken any rules at the time, and did so again two years after the incident when the subject was brought up again before another losing Champions League semi-final against Liverpool.

“The situation is very clear," the club said that the time. "Both matches were controlled by UEFA and they were more than satisfied on both nights that their ruling was intact, hence the statements that were issued by UEFA at the time and subsequently.”

"The only reason to publish this so close to a big match is to serve an agenda that is intended to undermine our team."