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Mariga has revealed the details of his final conversation with Jose Mourinho before he left Inter Milan in 2010 while describing how Kenyan coaches make life difficult for players
McDonald Mariga has aimed a dig at Kenyan coaches and their general poor man-management skills as he praised Jose Mourinho for how he treated his players during their time together at Inter Milan.
The now 36-year-old was signed by Jose Mourinho in January 2010 after a move to Manchester City failed to materialise, before both player and manager went on to help the Italian side clinch a historic treble.
Mourinho then left for Real Madrid right after delivering the treble, and as they were receiving their medals and celebrating with the trophy on the pitch, they shared a long embrace and a conversation.
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08:08 - 09.11.2023
FOOTBALL TBT: Mariga opens up on the behind the scenes intrigues of his failed Man City move & nearly missing out on Inter Milan
McDonald Mariga has revealed the intricate details of his £7 million transfer to Manchester City that fell through in 2010 and how its disappointment almost cost him a move to Inter Milan.
Mariga has revealed the details of that conversation, aiming a dig at Kenyan coaches, describing their man-management skills as appaling, as they treat their own players like ‘enemies’.
“Mourinho had told us he was going to leave for Real Madrid upon winning the Champions League,” Mariga told Radio 47.
“Some had worked under him for four years, others seven years, and so he had become like family, where you can tell them everything.
“It is not like here in Kenya where the coach is like an enemy who gives you a telling-off. It should not be like that. The main aim of a coach is to develop you as his asset, nurture you and instill confidence in you because you win him everything.
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05:42 - 08.11.2023
FOOTBALL Mariga reveals how a conversation with Samuel Eto’o left the Cameroon legend saddened by state of Kenyan football
McDonald Mariga has opened up on a past chat between him and Cameroon legend Samuel Eto’o that left the four-time African footballer of the year sympathising with Kenyan football
“I told him ‘Good luck, you helped us win the Champions League, and if we meet in future, it would be nice’.
“We still got to meet later on when I signed for Real Sociedad in Spain.”
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Mariga moved to Inter Milan in a co-ownership deal worth €5 million in a cash-plus player deal, in which Parma got half the registration rights of Jonathan Biabiany (€2.5 million) and the loan of Luis Antonio Jimenez.
Mariga’s decision proved to be a masterstroke as Inter went on to win the treble of Serie A, UEFA Champions League, and Coppa Italia that season, making him the first and only Kenyan player to have claimed the European trophy.
His younger brother Victor Wanyama would become the first Kenyan to play in the Premier League when he joined Southampton in 2013 before later signing for Tottenham Hotspur where he missed out on the Champions League after losing to Liverpool in the 2019 final.
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16:10 - 07.11.2023
FOOTBALL McDonald Mariga fires back at Jamal Mohamed over claims of ‘not connecting’ Kenyan players to European teams
McDonald Mariga has responded to claims made by Jamal Mohamed that he was among European-based stars who refused to help Kenyan players get opportunities abroad
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