'A SPECIAL ONE': His self-appraisal upon arriving at Chelsea in 2004 for his first stint as manager, having just won the Champions League with Portuguese club Porto.

"We have top players. I am sorry I am a bit arrogant, we have a top manager ... Again, please don't call me arrogant because what I am saying is true. I am European champion so I'm not one (out) of the bottle. I'm a -- I think I'm a special one."

WENGER THE 'VOYEUR': On long-serving Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger's keen interest in Chelsea's performances in 2005.

"I think he is one of these people who is a voyeur. He likes to watch other people.

"There are some guys who, when they are at home, have a big telescope to see what happens in other families. He speaks, speaks, speaks about Chelsea."

'CLOONEY' MOURINHO: On who should play him in a film of his life, asked in 2006:

"If they made a film of my life, I think they should get George Clooney to play me,” he said. “He’s a fantastic actor and my wife thinks he would be ideal.”

PLAYERS ARE EGGS AND OMELETTES: On lacking funds to recruit players and boost his Chelsea squad in 2007:

"It is omelettes and eggs. No eggs -- no omelettes! It depends on the quality of the eggs. In the supermarket you have class one, two or class three eggs and some are more expensive than others and some give you better omelettes. So when the class one eggs are in Waitrose and you cannot go there, you have a problem."

YOUNG PLAYERS ARE MELONS: Also in 2007.

"Young players are like melons. Only when you open and taste the melon are you 100 percent sure that the melon is good.

"Sometimes you have beautiful melons but they don't taste very good and some other melons are a bit ugly and when you open them, the taste is fantastic."

'THE HAPPY ONE': On his return to Chelsea in 2013 for his second stint at the club

"I am the happy one. Time flies. It looks like it was a couple of days ago but it was nine years ago ... I have the same heart, the same kind of emotions related to my passion for football and for my job. But of course I'm a different person."

'BETRAYED': On his frustration with his players following Chelsea's 2-1 loss to Leicester City on Monday, his last game in charge.

"I feel that my work was betrayed if it's the right word ... All last season I did phenomenal work and brought them to a level that is not their level -- is more than they really are.

"This season we are doing so bad that they players are, for some reason -- I'm not saying all of them, of course, I don't want to put some of them in the same basket -- but clearly with some of them, it's so, so difficult."