Updated: 12 May 2026 16:39 BST |
5 min read
Real Madrid-bound Jose Mourinho has received a brutal transfer update after being told he will have to sell players first before looking to strengthen in the summer transfer window, according to The Athletic.
Widespread reports indicate Real are looking to replace current head coach Alvaro Arbeloa at the end of the season, with BBC Sport claiming Mourinho is now in final negotiations to take over the post.
The Athletic’s David Ornstein reported last week that Mourinho was the preferred candidate of Real president Florentino Perez, who is driving the club’s search for Arbeloa’s replacement, though other names have been monitored.
United States boss Mauricio Pochettino, Milan head coach Massimiliano Allegri, France manager Didier Deschamps and Jurgen Klopp, who is out of work after leaving Liverpool in 2024, have also been considered by Perez, according to The Athletic.
Should Mourinho succeed Arbeloa in the Bernabeu hot seat, the Portuguese would complete a surprise return to the club whom he managed between 2011 and 2013, winning three honours including the 2011-12 La Liga title.
However, in the event that Mourinho departs current club Benfica for Real, the 63-year-old has now been told he will have to sell-to-buy in the upcoming summer transfer window.
In a separate report from The Athletic, Real’s next manager may need to bolster the club’s defensive ranks as David Alaba is expected to leave on a free transfer, while Antonio Rudiger’s contract also expires this summer.
The sale of fringe players including midfielder Dani Ceballos and striker Gonzalo Garcia are also reportedly being considered, as Los Blancos look to secure the vital funds needed to back their new head coach.
Real are currently reeling after failing to win a trophy for the second season running, with the Spanish giants set to finish second in La Liga. They were also beaten by Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-finals and second division side Albacete in the Copa del Rey round of 16.
Arbeloa replaced Xabi Alonso as manager in January, with the latter having been sacked after just eight months at the helm, and has won 15 of his 25 games in charge, drawing two and losing eight.
However, The Athletic understands confidence in Arbeloa has faded both in the boardroom and in the dressing room, in what has quickly become one of the most tumultuous seasons in the club’s history.
Real in chaos following a series of in-house altercations
Real announced last Friday that Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde were both fined €500,000 (£432,000) following a dressing room row between the two midfielders.
Uruguay ace Valverde, 27, went to hospital with a head injury following the confrontation with Tchouameni, 26, though the former denied that he “came to blows” with the France international.
Meanwhile, Germany defender Rudiger was involved in a training ground altercation with full-back Alvaro Carreras last week, according to The Athletic, while Kylian Mbappe reportedly insulted a coaching-staff member at the end of April.
Real are hoping to bounce back from a chaotic few weeks when they entertain Real Oviedo on Thursday evening, before wrapping up the season with clashes against Sevilla (away, Sunday 17 May) and Athletic Club (home, Saturday 23 May).
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