SERIE A NEWS
Mourinho admits insulting journalist, denies assault
Inter Milan coach Jose Mourinho has admitted he verbally abused
a journalist after Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Atalanta but denied that
there was physical contact.
League officials and Inter president Massimo Moratti are probing
the incident, which occurred outside the team bus, after Italy’s
sports journalists’ union complained.
“It’s true I insulted one of your colleagues with a word I
cannot repeat that was offensive, but it is not true that there was
aggressive intent or physical contact,” Mourinho told a news
conference on Tuesday.
Mourinho, who has lamented the grilling he gets from Italian
media so much that reports have speculated he could quit in May,
said he snapped because the journalist had been standing by the
team bus for months despite his protests.
“I will not make a public apology because the situation was not
public but private,” he said. “In front of him, like men, I will be
able to talk with him and end this story. Maybe with a bit of
humour – I expect a Christmas present from him.”