As Benfica prepare to face Real Madrid in the Champions League tonight, talk of Jose Mourinho potentially making a sensational return to the Bernabeu has started to gather pace.
Now 63 and managing in Portugal, rather than any of Europe’s top five leagues, Mourinho’s stock isn’t as high as it once was. Since guiding Chelsea to Premier League title glory in 2015, he’s won cups with Manchester United and Roma. But league titles have evaded him and, with Benfica currently seven points behind Porto in the Primeira Liga table, that’s something that looks unlikely to change any time soon.
He is, certainly, a different man to the smiling, charismatic and charming individual that burst onto the scene at Porto before dominating with Chelsea and Inter Milan. He was a hit at Real Madrid, too, winning LaLiga in 2012 at the expense of fierce rivals Pep Guardiola and Barcelona.
Yet while that’s the case, Mourinho is still Mourinho. The self-proclaimed Special One. There are times where the magic remains, such as in January when his team beat Madrid 4-2 to qualify for the Champions League play-offs. That night, the 63-year-old was back on top. A repeat this evening, when the two teams meet again, can’t be ruled out.
Curiously, however, Mourinho might not be in the Benfica dugout for much longer. Speculation over a sensational return to Real has arisen once more and, with the European titans a shadow of their usual selves, the stars could be about to align.
He did his best to quell the growing talk on Monday, ahead of tonight’s fixture. When asked if it was possible to reject an approach from Madrid, he said: “Can you say no? Yes. Yes you can.”
Reflecting on his spell in charge of the Spanish side, where he won the Copa del Rey as well as LaLiga, he added: “I gave everything to Real Madrid, everything that I had, I did good things, I did bad things, but I gave absolutely everything and that’s all.
“When (someone) leaves a club with those type of feelings, I think a connection always exists… the fans think highly of me, and that is fantastic, but with this I don’t want to encourage stories that don’t exist…
“The only thing that exists is that I have another year on my contract with Benfica. It’s a special contract because it was signed in an electoral period.”
Jose Mourinho is preparing for tonight’s Champions League clash between Benfica and Real Madrid
| REUTERSSeveral factors make a return possible. Most notably, and most importantly, is that Mourinho retains a positive relationship with Los Blancos chief Florentino Perez.
Perez appointed Mourinho in 2010, having been wowed by the way he toppled Guardiola’s Barcelona en route to winning a treble with Inter Milan.
Three years later, the Special One returned to Chelsea. This, according to him, was his decision.
Mourinho, speaking last month, suggested that Perez had begged him to stay despite the Portuguese coach causing friction with his abrasive nature inside the dressing room. Players such as Iker Casillas, Sergio Ramos and Cristiano Ronaldo all clashed with him.
Mourinho recalled: “He [Perez] said to me: ‘Don’t leave, you’ve done the hard part and the best part is yet to come.’
Jose Mourinho retains a close relationship with Real Madrid chief Florentino Perez
|GETTY
“I knew it was true, but I wanted to return to Chelsea after three years of great challenges in Spain.”
So positive was their relationship that, in 2015, rumours first linking Mourinho with a move back arose. Ultimately nothing ever materialised, with the manager leaving Chelsea under a cloud before replacing Louis van Gaal at Manchester United, but relations have always been positive in the years since.
One curious thing about Perez is, however, that he’s never afraid to go back to managers a second time.
Take Carlo Ancelotti, for example. The Italian guided Real to their 10th Champions League crown in 2014, with fierce rivals Atletico Madrid beaten in the final on that occasion after a bullet header from Sergio Ramos had forced extra-time.
Ancelotti was popular but, 12 months on, would be out of a job after Real failed to win a trophy.
However, that didn’t stop Perez from approaching the Italian for a second time. Ancelotti returned in 2021 and went on to add to his legacy with two Champions League titles and two LaLiga crowns.
The same can be said for Zinedine Zidane as well.
His first stint in charge brought remarkable success, with Real claiming three Champions League titles on the trot between 2016 and 2018 – with former Mourinho players Ronaldo and Ramos playing a starring role.
He stepped away in 2018 citing fatigue but Perez persuaded him to return less than a year later. The Real supremo has, without a doubt, made going back to former managers something of a habit.
Egos have become a big problem with Real Madrid fans targeting Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe
| GETTYA third factor that could see Mourinho head back to Real is the club’s ongoing problems with egotistical players.
The dressing room has, put mildly, got out of hand. Ancelotti often indulged them, which was a tactic that brought success. His two successors so far, Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa, have tried and failed to coach them into submission.
Even Real supporters have grown frustrated, with a vast number of them booing and jeering during matches.
Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe, despite being two of their most-talismanic figures, have been among the chief targets.
Mourinho may be combative, but that’s potentially what Real need. Perez hates players falling out of line and, with Alonso and Arbeloa struggling to tame the arrogance inside the squad, Mourinho could prove to be the antidote.
Real are also too much of an attack-minded side. Mourinho, with his fondness for the defensive part of the game, may provide more balance than what they currently have – saving Perez, and the club, millions on fresh reinforcements in the process with some tactical tweaks.
For now, he’s solely focused on guiding Benfica into the Champions League knockout stage.
As for the future, however, that’s something that remains to be seen.