Chelsea’s lawyers said that the team's former doctor Eva Carneiro rejected a £1.2M ($1.7M) settlement "over her claim of constructive dismissal connected to an on-pitch dispute with ex-manager José Mourinho," according to Ahmed & Fortado of the FINANCIAL TIMES. Mourinho, appointed manager of rival ManU last month, is set to face "at least one day of questioning during an employment tribunal which began in Croydon on Monday and is expected to last 10 days." The case "may revolve around the precise meaning of Portuguese swear words." Carneiro’s barrister, Mary O’Rourke QC, said that her client clearly heard Mourinho call her "filha da puta" -- meaning "daughter of a whore" in Portuguese -- when she ran on the pitch. O’Rourke argued, "You say filha da puta when you are denigrating a woman. He is saying it to the back of the claimant who is doing something he didn’t like … that is the context." On Monday, Daniel Stilitz QC, representing Chelsea, argued Mourinho had said "filho da puta" -- or "son of a bitch" in Portuguese -- and that the comment was not directed at his medical staff. It was argued he used the phrase regularly during games and in training, adding that the comment had "no sexist connotation." A Portuguese language expert "will give evidence in the case," as well as Chelsea Chair Bruce Buck and Marina Granovskaia, a Chelsea director and a close adviser to club Owner Roman Abramovich (FT, 6/6). The BBC reported legal papers submitted to the tribunal showed that Carneiro had been "made an open offer of £1.2m to settle her claims." The football club's legal team said that it would show the club had taken steps to settle with Carneiro because it believed that it was "in no-one's interests that this dispute should be determined through litigation." The legal team said, "They are conscious that, whatever the facts of the matter, it is likely to be widely and incorrectly assumed that they could have avoided this coming tribunal." But Chelsea's legal team argued that documents at the time showed Carneiro did not consider Mourinho's actions "to be discriminatory." The legal team argued, "The purpose of the discrimination claim was to lift the statutory cap, in order to justify the claiments's extravagant compensation claim" (BBC, 6/6). In London, Adam Withnall wrote Mourinho "admitted swearing" at Carneiro. In a written statement to the panel, Mourinho conceded using the Portuguese phrase "filho da puta," meaning "son of a b**** or w****", as Carneiro ran onto the pitch to treat Eden Hazard during a match against Swansea" on Aug. 8. He said, "Filho da puta is a phrase I often use, all of the players know it. There is no sexist connotation in the use of the phrase -- it is just like saying 'f*** off.' In the world of football, a lot of swear words are used" (INDEPENDENT, 6/6). The BBC reported documents submitted by Carneiro's legal team allege that Mourinho suggested "she should work with Chelsea Ladies following the Swansea game." They allege that on Aug. 10, Mourinho told Chelsea Head of Communications & PR Steve Atkins that "he did not want the first team doctor on the bench at the next match," saying, "She works in academy team or ladys (sic) team not with me." They also claim that Chelsea "took no action following complaints about sexually explicit chanting at various away games -- in particular at Manchester United and West Ham -- and a lack of female changing facilities" (BBC, 6/6). In Manchester, Yakub Qureshi wrote Mourinho added that Cesc Fabregas "had used the Spanish equivalent of the term when a Chelsea player was fouled during the game." In his statement, Mourinho said, "Cesc and I both speak English well, but in the heat of the game we both swear in our mother language. Eva was not on the pitch at that point in time" (MANCHESTER EVENING NEWS, 6/6).
