'I feared that if I go back to Milan with the team, I wouldn't be able to leave'

The Tottenham coach Jose Mourinho, once of Real Madrid and winner of the treble with Inter Milan in 2010, said on Friday that he decided to sign for Madrid after the second leg of Inter's semifinal win over Barcelona in 2010ñ 

Inter went on to win the trophy, beating Bayern Munich in the final, but Mourinho steered clear of the celebrations back in Milan. 

"I was with (the players) but then I didn’t go back to the dressing room because I didn’t want to say goodbye," he told The Athletic. 

"It was too hard for me and I didn’t want to leave with them to Milan because people were saying I had a contract with Real Madrid. It was not true. I had an agreement, but I did not have a contract signed.

“I really wanted to go to Real Madrid at that time. I really wanted to try to win the Spanish league after the English and Italian leagues. But I feared that if I go back to Milan with the team and, with the reaction of the players and the fans, I was afraid of not being able to leave. I can say that I ran away. I ran away from them.

“A few days later, I signed with Real Madrid. And then I could go back to Milan and I could meet the president and have dinner with Moratti and his family.”