'Jose Mourinho sold me from Chelsea – but he didn't even have the decency to call me'
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Former Chelsea striker Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink has revealed that ex-manager Jose Mourinho didn't even call him to inform of his departure from the club. The Dutch forward was a huge part of Chelsea's early success following Roman Abramovich's takeover of the club back in 2003. Joining the Blues in 2000, Hasselbaink finished as top-scorer at Chelsea in three of four seasons he spent at Stamford Bridge.
In his final season in west London, his 17 goals helped the club finish second in the Premier League and reach the semi-finals of the Champions League, where Chelsea were beaten by Monaco. However, once Mourinho was appointed manager, Hasselbaink was seen as surplus to requirements by the iconic Portuguese coach.
Despite the arrivals of Hernan Crespo and Adrian Mutu for big money just after the takeover, Hasselbaink held his own, as demonstrated by his goal tally in his final season. However, while Mourinho later apologised for his treatment of the former Leeds United striker, he expressed a disappointment about his departure to Middlesbrough was handled.
"Jose [Mourinho] came to the club in 2004 and basically said that I could go,” Hasselbaink said on BetMGM’s The LineUp. "There wasn’t a phone call or anything like that from him. Peter Kenyon [then Chelsea chief executive] called my agent but that was about it.
