• Portuguese leads Real Madrid to first championship since 2008
• Mourinho has now won seven titles in four different countries
José Mourinho believes winning La Liga with Real Madrid was the toughest of the seven league titles he has secured in his managerial career, which has covered stints in Portugal, England, Italy and Spain.
Real wrapped up the title with a 3-0 win at Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday that maintained their seven-point lead over Barcelona with two games left and ended their bitter rivals' three-year stranglehold on the Spanish league championship.
Mourinho became the first coach to win a domestic league in four different major countries following his two titles in Portugal with Porto, two in England with Chelsea, two in Italy with Internazionale and now one in Spain with Real. "It was the most difficult," the 49-year-old said. "Up until the final moment nobody gifted us anything. Bilbao put out their best team, the stadium was full and the team wanted to win and fight, which is the way it should be."
Getting the better of Barcelona, where he was an assistant under Bobby Robson in the late 1990s, will be a particular source of satisfaction for Mourinho who has made a habit of needling his former employers during his two years in the Spanish capital.
He could not help taking a dig at the Catalans, suggesting one of the penalty's they had been awarded in their 4-1 home win over Malaga earlier on Wednesday was "soft".
"Barça won a lot of games and tried to push the league as far as possible," he added. "I think that they themselves, champions and a club with a great tradition, know that we deserve this league title."
Cristiano Ronaldo was understandably delighted to win his first La Liga title with Real following. The forward missed an early penalty at San Mamés but he was later on the mark to add to goals from Gonzalo Higuaín and Mesut Ozil.
"It's great," Ronaldo told AS newspaper. "It's my first league here in Spain and I'm very happy. It's mission accomplished and to win the league is great. [The players] are all very happy because it gives you a lot of joy to win the league after ten months of battling. Winning the league is very difficult."
Iker Casillas, the Real captain, added: "The season has been very long and tough. We've taken a little step forward with respect to last season. The big pity has been the Champions League. Hopefully we can do it next season.
"The coach is also a very important part in this. We dedicate this to all Madrid fans who wanted a league title. We hope to take another little step forward next year. It was difficult to beat a team like Barcelona we've done it." Read More
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