Speaking to French sports paper L’Equipe, Mourinho revealed:
“I was hours away – I almost signed up for the England national team. But at the last minute I began thinking, ‘I am going to coach a national side, there will be one match a month and the rest of the time I will be in my office or overseeing matches.'”
The former Chelsea manager added that international coaching was too far away from day to day involvement, saying:
“And then to have to wait until the summer to compete in a European Championship or a World Cup? No, it wasn’t for me. So at the last moment I pulled back, preferring to wait for the right job to come along, a good club, a challenge that could motivate me. That was Inter.”
