Mourinho: The Great Dictator

Since his arrival in Britain 18 months ago Jose Mourinho's style, arrogance and Iberian good looks have charmed and irritated in equal measure. As his Chelsea team prepare to meet Barcelona this week, Peter Conrad argues that Mourinho's militancy and shameless self-belief are rooted in his country's fervent attachments to family, religion and politics.

Mourinho fascinates and mystifies us because he is foreign. One tabloid calls him a 'Portu-geezer', while another likens him to a jellyfish with a painful sting, a 'Portuguese man o'war'.