English Premier League
Ola Aina praises Jose Mourinho’s influence during Chelsea tenure
By Monsurah Olatunji
Nigeria international Ola Aina has paid tribute to former Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho, crediting the Portuguese tactician for giving him his first opportunity with the Blues’ senior team.
The Nottingham Forest defender reflected on his early days at Chelsea in an interview on The Rest Is Football podcast, stressing the influence of Mourinho during the manager’s second stint at the club in the mid-2010s.
“Jose was the one that brought me into the first team,” Aina said.
“I didn’t get my debut under him, but he brought me into the fold.”
Aina admitted that, as a young player, he was initially intimidated by Mourinho’s presence.
“I remember being a bit in awe. The first couple of weeks I was a bit intimidated—I wasn’t trying to give him eye contact,” he recalled.
“But as the training sessions went on, he was actually alright. He’s alright with the young ones, from what I remember. It was a good time.”
While Mourinho was instrumental in his promotion, it was Antonio Conte who eventually handed Aina his senior debut in the 2016/17 season—a campaign that ended with Chelsea lifting the Premier League title.
“Conte gave me my debut. When it comes to training and matches, he was very, very demanding.
“He wants to play football in a certain way, and that’s how he got his message across to the players. We bought into it. It was really tough.”
Aina also described the intensity of Conte’s training regime, particularly during pre-season preparations.
“I remember the pre-season—everyone was out there dying. The hardest pre-season I’ve had was with Conte because he brought different ideas and a different way of training and getting fit. It was difficult for me,” he said.
The 28-year-old, a product of Chelsea’s Cobham academy, made six senior appearances for the club and spent time on loan before leaving permanently in 2019 to pursue regular first-team football.
