Super Eagles defender Bright Osayi-Samuel has revealed that working with Jose Mourinho at Fenerbahce has helped improve his self-confidence.
Having joined Fenerbahce in 2021, Osayi-Samuel has grown to become an important member of the team. Since he arrived at the club, he has made 140 appearances, with seven goals and 13 assists.
Before this season, he worked with seven coaches, including Emre Belözoğlu, Erol Bulut, Vítor Pereira, İsmail Kartal, Zeki Murat Göle, João de Deus, and Jorge Jesus.
However, the Turkish club recently signed Jose Mourinho – who is only about a month into his Fenerbahce managerial reign, who has already made such an impact that a Nigerian player has described what it is like working with him.
In his first official match, he guided the team to beat Lugano 4-3 in the 2024/25 Champions League qualifying round, with veteran Edin Dzeko netting a hat-trick.
The Super Eagles defender has described what it is like working with the former Chelsea manager in their short but intense time together.
“Mourinho is scary but also very nice. It is a great honor to work with him,” Osayi-Samuel said, per Fanatik.
“I want to learn the history of the players. He instills self-confidence in the player. I think I will learn a lot while working with him this year.”
The Special One has a history of working with Africans and sharing great relationships with them, including Didier Drogba, Michael Essien and John Obi-Mikel at Chelsea. Legendary striker Samuel Eto’o also worked with him at Inter Milan and Chelsea.
According to ESPN, he will pocket €10.4 million per year in Turkey as he aims to break the club’s league title drought and get them into the UEFA Champions League.
