Schjelderup admitted that before Mourinho took over, he was not playing regularly and felt his routine had become "boring," leading to complacency.
When Mourinho first arrived at Benfica, he publicly criticized Schjelderup's physical conditioning, and his inability to sustain 90-minute intensity, and struggles in defensive transitions.
José Mourinho demanded that Andreas Schjelderup worked harder defensively, even against weaker teams. When he failed to do so, he was told off—both during and after the match.
“I was a bit lazy before Mourinho arrived. I wasn’t as sharp in every single match,” admits Andreas Schjelderup.
He makes no secret of the fact that José Mourinho set new demands for him—especially defensively.
“When he arrived, the standard was set. If you didn’t meet it, you were done—and you’d certainly hear about it. Now, I don’t just track back against Barcelona; I do it in those ‘tricky’ away games, too.”
“He was very clear about it when he first came in. If I wanted to play under him, I had to track back—no exceptions,” says the 22-year-old.
Schjelderup remembers one particular away match against a team from the bottom half of the table in Portugal.
“He really told me off—both during and after the match. A bit of a reality check,” Schjelderup says.
Under Mourinho, Schjelderup started 15 out of 17 league matches from January until the end of the season. He recorded six goals and four assists. Following the change of manager this summer, the situation has changed for Schjelderup.
Under Marco Silva, Schjelderup has started four out of 11 league matches. His average playing time has dropped from 73 to 41 minutes.
"There was period before the World Cup, when I hit peak form and had Mourinho's full confidence. I played every match and stayed on for the full 90 minutes. You get comfortable, and that’s when you’re at your best—when you have that much trust. I have missed that after the World Cup."
"Perhaps I didn't bounce back the way I should have after the World Cup—both in body and mind. It’s been decent but not quite the perfect state I was in before the World Cup."
Schjelderup is expected to play from the start when Norway face Wales in Oslo on Saturday.
