José Mourinho rejects Benfica speculation
He has been linked with the job after head coach Rui Vitoria was sacked, but José Mourinho says he will not be taking charge of Benfica.
José Mourinho says he will not be taking charge of Benfica as he has no intention of returning to Portugal's Primeira Liga. Mourinho was sacked by Manchester United last month, the Premier League giants since winning all five games under interim boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
After Benfica sacked Rui Vitoria, president Luis Filipe Vieira suggested Mourinho, who started his managerial career with a brief stint at the club, was a top target. "I am his friend. Who would not like to have Mourinho? [But] I have not talked to him," Vieira was quoted as saying by Portuguese broadcaster SIC. "If he says yes tomorrow, he'll be here at the drop of a hat. Money is no issue for Benfica."
Mourinho "no intention of working in Portugal"
But speaking to Correio da Manha, former Porto boss Mourinho rejected the suggestion he could be tempted back to the Primeira Liga. "I do not like feeding news stories, but I have no intention of working in Portugal," he said on Thursday. "The best way to respect a great club [Benfica] and a great president is to say that I was not approached."
Mourinho has also been linked with a return to former clubs Inter Milan and Real Madrid, having previously had two spells at Chelsea. But the 55-year-old insisted he will not be giving any more updates on his future to the media.
"It's a tremendous honour when you return to a club where you've been," he said. "But I'm talking to you and I will not talk to anyone else. I'm not training, I love that I am not talked about all the time and the best way to ensure that remains the case is for me to not talk either.”