Jose Mourinho has revealed he never gave up on winning a Premier League game at St James' Park despite having a 'very bad record' on Tyneside.
The Portuguese failed to win a top-flight fixture on the road against Newcastle United during his two spells at Chelsea and his stint at Manchester United.
Indeed, until Mourinho finally ended that hoodoo with Spurs, the 58-year-old had managed more away league games against Newcastle without winning than any other club in his career.
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Mourinho eventually claimed three points at St James' at the eighth attempt last summer when Spurs defeated Newcastle 3-1 and, after the game, the Special One said he could 'finally look to Mr Robson's statue and laugh' because he usually 'left the stadium with a sad face'.
With that bond with his mentor, Sir Bobby Robson, in mind, Mourinho has always considered himself 'a little Magpie' and the Roma boss has a deep respect for Geordies' passion and the club's heritage.
Mourinho certainly never had a negative mindset when his teams made the trip to Tyneside and he touched on that while previewing England's Euro 2020 showdown with Germany.
"England don’t need to think about the history of these two teams," Mourinho wrote in his column for the Times.
"I am not superstitious at all. I had a very bad record going to play at St James’ Park and I was never thinking, 'I never win here'. One day I did win.
"I don’t go a lot with those traditions like England, 'Oh we always lose on penalties'. In the 2018 World Cup, England won on penalties. I like the way these players are thinking."
