Jose Mourinho says he has apologised to England boss Gareth Southgate for calling him "Gary".
The Tottenham manager repeatedly used the name to refer to Southgate in the week while making a point about striker Harry Kane's international commitments.
It was seen by many as a sign of disrespect on Mourinho's part - but the Portuguese supremo insists that was not the case.
Mourinho claims he thought "Gary" was commonly used as a short version of "Gareth" in this country - and had told Southgate as much.
“I spoke already with Southgate, which I want to share with the public," he told Sky Sports.
"When I told Gary Southgate, I promise, and I promise to him, that I always thought in so many years in England, I always thought that Gary was short for Gareth.
"I didn’t know. I called him Gary and I apologise to him, I want to make that public because I only have respect to him.
"I thought I was being nice to him, in the end, I was insulting him."
Mourinho then added: "He can call me John, if he wants, I will accept that.”
