Real Madrid have identified Jose Mourinho as their next manager, but a move for the Portuguese has been put on hold for the time being. This is due to elections being called after the club’s electoral board ratified the candidacy of Enrique Riquelme, who will challenge Florentino Perez for the presidency.
Perez has been the driving force behind plans to bring back Mourinho 13 years after his first spell in charge, and it is he that has agreed a two-year contract with the current Benfica head coach. However, the election has forced the finalising of his return to be stopped for the time being, and this could prove to be quite costly for Real Madrid.
According to Diario AS, Mourinho’s exit clause at Benfica, which is valued at €7m, expires on Tuesday, and if Real Madrid fail to activate it before it expires, they would be quoted €15m to bring in their number one managerial candidate.
€15m is Mourinho’s gross salary at Benfica, and that would be the Portuguese club’s initial demands in the event that Real Madrid do not trigger his exit clause. However, it cannot be ruled out that negotiations will take place to lower this amount, although it is unlikely to go back down as far as €7m.
Mourinho relaxed about the solution
As for Mourinho himself, he’s relaxed about the situation. He’s desperate to return to Real Madrid for a second spell, and despite this being delayed for the time being, he does not see his chance of a comeback slipping away.
It will be interesting to see whether there are any developments over the next 24 hours when it comes to Real Madrid and Mourinho. It’s unlikely to be the case, but fortunately, there is plenty of time until pre-season for things to be resolved, and for the aforementioned agreement to be finalised.
