"The boss wants you at the press conference," Walsh said with a smile.
Mourinho paused.
Then he laughed and shook his head.
Ethan knew him far too well.
He had been furious enough after the match that his first instinct was to refuse the press conference altogether.
"Fine," Mourinho said. "I'll go."
Walsh nodded.
"Ethan's already made the arrangements. Everything we've collected from the match, including what happened in the tunnel at half-time, will be organised and submitted to UEFA."
"We're also appealing Essien's red card."
His expression became more serious.
"Which means you absolutely have to attend the press conference."
UEFA regulations required managers to fulfil their media obligations.
If Mourinho deliberately refused, it would only create another disciplinary issue and give UEFA an unnecessary reason to focus on New Manchester United's behaviour rather than the substance of their complaint.
Whatever Mourinho thought of the governing body, now was not the time to hand them ammunition.
Then Walsh smiled again.
"Ethan also said he knows you're incapable of keeping your opinions to yourself."
Mourinho raised an eyebrow.
"So you're free to say what you like tonight."
"Within reason."
Walsh paused.
"Just don't attack UEFA directly."
Mourinho's smile widened.
"Anything else?"
"Apparently anything else is fair game."
Cassell laughed.
He had always found the relationship between Ethan and Mourinho fascinating.
Mourinho was famously difficult to control.
Confident to the point of arrogance.
Combative.
Unwilling to defer to almost anyone.
Yet Ethan could usually get through to him.
Perhaps because he rarely tried to control him for the sake of control.
He simply understood how Mourinho thought.
The press room at the Camp Nou was packed.
Journalists from across Europe had stayed behind because nobody wanted to miss what Mourinho might say.
The match alone had produced enough controversy.
Messi's one-on-one had been incorrectly ruled offside.
Essien had received a second yellow for an incident that looked extremely soft on replay.
Terry had then been booked for protesting.
And rumours were already spreading through the media that staff from New Manchester United and Barcelona had been involved in a confrontation in the tunnel during half-time.
For journalists, it was irresistible.
One veteran reporter looked around the room and grinned.
"This should be lively."
Rijkaard arrived first.
Barcelona had failed to win at home despite playing against ten men for most of the second half, but he still appeared on time and took his seat.
Mourinho did not.
Minutes passed.
Then more.
Barcelona's press officer was beginning to look increasingly irritated.
He was almost ready to announce that Mourinho would not be attending when the Portuguese finally appeared.
His expression bore no resemblance to the man who had celebrated with his players after the final whistle.
The smile was gone.
He looked deeply aggrieved.
Mourinho sat down.
The Barcelona press officer reached for the microphone.
Mourinho got there first.
"My apologies for being late."
Every camera turned towards him.
"I had other matters to deal with."
He glanced across the crowded room.
"I understand there are more than five hundred journalists here, dozens of radio stations, television broadcasters and news agencies."
A faint smile appeared.
"So I realise I've inconvenienced quite a lot of people."
"Sorry."
The press officer looked annoyed at having lost control of his own press conference.
The journalists could not have cared less.
Hands immediately went up.
Mourinho scanned the room.
Then pointed towards a woman near the front.
"The lady from Marca."
It looked casual.
It was not.
Mourinho knew exactly which publications were sympathetic to Real Madrid and therefore unlikely to offer Barcelona much protection.
The reporter stood.
"Mr Mourinho, was your delay connected to the incident in the tunnel at half-time?"
She continued before anyone could interrupt.
"We've heard that members of your staff saw Mr Rijkaard entering the referee's room and that a confrontation followed between the two clubs. Is that accurate?"
Rijkaard's expression darkened.
He opened his mouth.
Mourinho answered first.
"Yes."
The room immediately became quieter.
"We've gathered evidence relating to the incident."
"That material will be submitted to UEFA together with our appeal against Essien's dismissal."
He looked directly ahead.
"We believe there were serious breaches of proper procedure."
Rijkaard finally managed to speak.
"I should make something clear."
He adjusted the microphone.
"I did not discuss the match with the referee."
His tone was controlled.
"I went to greet him at half-time because I had not had the opportunity before kick-off."
"That was all."
"Nothing improper happened."
Mourinho turned towards him.
"Is that so?"
Rijkaard looked back.
Mourinho's voice remained calm.
"First, whether it was improper is not for you to decide."
"Nor is it for me."
"UEFA can make that judgement."
He leaned slightly towards his microphone.
"But I think both you and the referee understand why a manager entering the referee's room during half-time of a Champions League knockout match raises questions."
He paused.
"Let me put it another way."
"If I had walked into the referee's room while New Manchester United were leading 1-0, would Barcelona have considered that completely harmless?"
Rijkaard said nothing.
Mourinho continued.
"And I'm also sceptical that it was simply a greeting."
A few reporters began writing faster.
"I'm not accusing anyone of lying."
His tone made it obvious that he was doing almost exactly that.
"But after half-time, one of my players was sent off following a decision that I believe was wrong."
He held up a hand before Rijkaard could interrupt.
"Essien wins the ball."
"Belletti runs into him."
"There is ordinary contact as Michael turns away."
"And suddenly we are playing with ten men."
Mourinho shook his head.
"Belletti's reaction was excellent."
A few journalists laughed.
"Truly excellent."
"He should consider acting after football."
"With that performance, perhaps Hollywood has a future for him."
The room erupted.
Rijkaard looked furious.
Mourinho sat back, apparently satisfied.
Another hand went up.
A reporter from The Sun was recognised.
"Leaving the referee aside, José, what did you make of Barcelona's performance?"
Several journalists smiled.
It was a deliberately provocative question.
Mourinho knew that too.
"I would divide the match into two periods."
He raised one finger.
"When it was eleven against eleven, I was not impressed."
Another finger.
"When it was eleven against ten, Barcelona improved."
Laughter began around the room.
Mourinho continued.
"Even then, they scored while we were still reorganising after the dismissal."
"After that, they had plenty of possession."
He shrugged.
"But possession is not the same as knowing how to score."
The sarcasm was impossible to miss.
A Spanish journalist raised his hand.
"How confident are you ahead of the second leg?"
Mourinho smiled.
"I don't know what percentage you want me to give you."
"But I can promise you one thing."
"At home, we will show Barcelona something different."
The reporter waited.
Mourinho leaned towards the microphone.
"We'll show them how to turn possession into goals."
The room burst into laughter again.
Another Spanish reporter spoke.
"Cruyff wrote before the match that New Manchester United would be too conservative, and that English teams tend to focus more on destruction than creation. What do you say to that?"
Mourinho barely hesitated.
"Cruyff is an expert."
A pause.
"Just not always a very good one."
More laughter.
"He seems to have forgotten that a Champions League knockout tie lasts 180 minutes, not ninety."
Mourinho spread his hands.
"You don't run a marathon using the tactics of a hundred-metre sprint."
"If he thinks every minute of a two-legged tie should be played in exactly the same way, that's his opinion."
His smile sharpened.
"And if he ever returns to management, perhaps we'll all have the opportunity to see how well that philosophy works."
The next day's headlines practically wrote themselves.
Yet beyond Mourinho's confrontation with Barcelona, the first legs of the Champions League round of 16 had raised wider questions about English football.
The Premier League clubs had endured a mixed week.
Manchester United lost 1-0 at Old Trafford to AC Milan.
Palacio was outstanding for the Rossoneri and scored the only goal of the match.
That left Ferguson's side in serious trouble.
Losing the first leg at home was difficult enough.
Trying to overturn the deficit at the San Siro against an experienced Italian side would be even harder.
Manchester United's problems could not be separated from the instability surrounding the Glazer takeover.
The club remained powerful.
But they no longer possessed the same financial or institutional certainty that had defined the previous era.
Arsenal were in trouble too.
They travelled to Munich and lost 3-1 to Bayern.
Ivica Olić scored twice.
Éric Abidal was excellent throughout.
Arsenal's only consolation arrived in the 88th minute, when Hangeland scored from a corner.
The away goal kept the tie alive.
But Wenger's side would still need a major performance in London.
Chelsea had enjoyed a far easier evening.
Ancelotti's side overwhelmed Lyon 4-1 at Stamford Bridge.
Lyon rarely looked capable of troubling them.
Their only significant moment came when Malouda created a chance for Benzema, who scored a consolation goal.
By then, Chelsea had already done the damage.
Elsewhere, Bayer Leverkusen lost 3-1 at home to Juventus.
PSV Eindhoven beat Monaco 1-0.
Real Madrid produced one of the strongest performances of the round, winning 3-0 away at Werder Bremen.
Inter Milan drew 1-1 away to Porto.
And New Manchester United returned from the Camp Nou with a 1-1 draw and an away goal.
Of the four Premier League clubs still in the competition, Chelsea and New Manchester United therefore held the strongest positions.
Manchester United and Arsenal both faced difficult second legs.
Predictably, the English press responded with another round of national soul-searching.
Why had Premier League clubs underperformed so often in Europe?
Was the domestic game too physical?
Was the fixture schedule too demanding?
Were English sides tactically inflexible?
Did the league need to become more technical?
The questions appeared every year.
So did most of the answers.
Ethan had little interest in joining that debate.
New Manchester United had more immediate business.
The evidence from the Camp Nou had to be assembled.
Statements needed to be collected.
Essien's dismissal had to be appealed.
And the half-time incident needed to be formally reported.
UEFA did not take long to respond.
(To be continued.)