Updated: 24 May 2026 15:52 BST |
5 min read
Jose Mourinho’s return to Real Madrid is under threat after Benfica crafted a new plan to ensure they do not lose their head coach without a fight, according to reports in Spain.
The Spanish heavyweights are looking to appoint a new manager to succeed Alvaro Arbeloa, who announced on Friday that he will leave the club at the end of the 2025-26 season.
Arbeloa, who stepped up from Real’s academy to replace Xabi Alonso as senior team manager in January, oversaw a 4-2 home win over Athletic Club on the final day of the La Liga season on Saturday.
Widespread reports have indicated that Mourinho, who managed Real between 2011 and 2013 and won three major honours, is in final negotiations to complete a dramatic return to the Bernabeu dugout.
According to BBC Sport, the Portuguese has a clause in his contract which allows him to leave for €3million (£2.6m) up to 10 days after Benfica’s final match of the season, which was against Estoril on 16 May.
However, with just two days remaining until that clause expires next Tuesday, Real are yet to confirm Mourinho’s appointment, with the club currently in the midst of presidential elections called by Florentino Perez.
And according to Spanish publication Diario AS, Portuguese giants Benfica are looking to make it harder for Real to name Mourinho as their next head coach as the deadline draws ever closer.
Benfica to play hardball if Mourinho clause expires
Should Real fail to trigger the €3m clause in Mourinho’s contract before next Tuesday, the same outlet claims Portuguese giants Benfica will instead demand €7m for the 63-year-old’s services.
Meanwhile, current Real president Perez – who called the fresh elections on 12 May – will face competition from renewable energy entrepreneur Enrique Riquelme after he announced his intention to run for presidency.
In quotes carried by The Athletic, Riquelme said at Real’s Valdebebas training ground on Saturday: “Today is a very important day for Real Madrid. After 20 years, there will finally be a chance to vote. This is not a candidacy against anyone; it is in favour of Real Madrid, in support of a project we have worked on extensively up to this point and that we would decide on today.
“We have an enormously important project in sporting terms and socially; there are many initiatives that the members will love. I ask them not to be afraid, to be brave, to listen to us, and to vote between the two candidacies thinking about the short, medium, and long term.
“Once the electoral board officially names us as candidates, we will have two weeks to present all the projects we have, and I hope you will allow all the messages to reach every corner of Spain.”
Riquelme is the only person challenging Real president Perez, who has stood unopposed in the club’s last four electoral cycles in 2013, 2017, 2021 and 2025.
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