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Jose MourinhoGetty Images
Jonas Rütten

Translated by

Chaos is undermining Real Madrid: Jose Mourinho will probably cost far more than expected

LaLiga
Transfers
Real Madrid
Benfica
J. Mourinho
A. Arbeloa

According to consistent media reports, Jose Mourinho is set to take the helm at Real Madrid once again. However, his appointment is set to cost the club a fortune.

According to reports in Bild and Portuguese TV channel RTP, among others, Mourinho's release clause at Benfica has expired. 

As a result, Real Madrid—who could have secured the 63-year-old for €7m—missed the deadline on Tuesday, leaving the club to pay the full €14m release clause if they still want to appoint him. Mourinho remains under contract at Benfica until 2027.

  • At a sensational mid-May press conference, President Florentino Pérez first rebuked the media, denounced a "smear campaign" against the club, and then called for fresh presidential elections. For the first time ever, a rival candidate—Enrique Riquelme—has been formally nominated to challenge Pérez.

    According to Bild, the deal to bring back José Mourinho—scheduled to be finalised on Whit Monday—has been put on ice until the election result is known. Nevertheless, Benfica still expects "The Special One" to return to the Bernabéu for a second spell this summer, after his 2010–2013 tenure. 

    Marco Silva, who has managed Fulham since 2021, is then set to take over at Benfica. With the Cottagers he finished eleventh in the Premier League last term, and his contract with the London club expires this summer.

    Following a brief and underwhelming stint at Fenerbahce, Mourinho moved to Benfica in September 2023. Despite an unbeaten league campaign, he failed to win silverware as Porto claimed the title and eliminated them from the cup in the quarter-finals. Their Champions League run also stalled at the intermediate stage, with Real Madrid ending their European hopes.

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  • FBL-ESP-LIGA-SEVILLA-REAL MADRIDAFP

    Real Madrid descends into chaos under Arbeloa

    Despite advancing in the Champions League against "Mou" and Benfica, Real Madrid's season began poorly. Internal disputes with key players led to Xabi Alonso's departure after just a few months in charge, following the Supercopa final loss to Barcelona in mid-January. His successor, Álvaro Arbeloa, got off to a disastrous start.

    Real then exited the Copa del Rey at the round-of-16 stage to Albacete, compounded their woes with costly LaLiga errors, and soon trailed Barcelona in the title race. Their Champions League campaign stalled in the quarter-finals against Bayern Munich in April. By that point, Arbeloa's departure at season's end was inevitable. 

    He, too, failed to restore calm or impose structure on the royal dressing room. In May, reports of heated altercations—most notably between Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde—only poured fuel on the fire, while the protracted Kylian Mbappé saga threatened to ignite the powder keg further. 

    When he returns to the Bernabéu bench, Mourinho will have his work cut out.

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