10 Jun 2026 06:59 BST |
4 min read
Jose Mourinho will become Real Madrid’s next manager following a series of official announcements made late on Tuesday evening by Los Blancos and Benfica.
Real Madrid created space on the bench for Mourinho by confirming the departure of Alvaro Arbeloa after an unsuccessful stint at the club that began in January.
Meanwhile, Benfica confirmed that the Portuguese has agreed to re-join the Bernabeu side for a second stint, having departed in 2013, with Marco Silva replacing him on the touchline in Lisbon.
Real Madrid pave way for Mourinho has Arbeloa leaves
While there has long been a sense of inevitability about Arbeloa’s departure from a first-team role at Real Madrid, this was only made formal on Tuesday.
Los Merengues confirmed the news via a brief statement on their official website:
“Real Madrid CF and Alvaro Arbeloa have reached an agreement to end his time as first team coach.
“Real Madrid is deeply grateful to Alvaro Arbeloa, who throughout his time at the club, from his time in our youth academy, has consistently demonstrated loyalty, commitment, and professionalism. He exemplifies the values of our club.
“Real Madrid, which will always be his home, wishes Alvaro Arbeloa and his entire family the best of luck in this new stage of their lives.”
Benfica confirm Mourinho’s move to Real Madrid
Across in Lisbon, meanwhile, Benfica soon announced that Mourinho was leaving the club after less than a full season in charge.
“Benfica has informed the CMVM (Portuguese stock market) that Real Madrid has formally expressed its intention to hire Jose Mourinho for the amount of €15m, with the coach having given his agreement. Thank you, Jose Mourinho,” it states.
Benfica appeared well prepared for the situation, which has been an open secret for several weeks and only needed confirmed by Florentino Perez winning the presidential election in the Spanish capital.
As such, the announcement of Marco Silva’s arrival followed 12 minutes later. The 48-year-old arrives after five impressive years at Fulham and has agreed a three-year deal at the Estadio da Luz.
What comes next at Real Madrid?
Everything is moving at breakneck speed at Real Madrid, with Perez’s presidency set to be followed by a string of major developments, which began on Tuesday when Los Blancos had a €150m bid for Atletico Madrid’s Julian Alvarez rejected by their neighbours.
Of course, the next is simply to confirm Mourinho as their manager, which is now little more than a formality.
Following this, a couple of new signings are set to be made official before the World Cup begins. Denzel Dumfries’ €20m release clause from Inter Milan will be triggered and the Netherlands international will become a Real Madrid player, while Ibrahima Konate’s agreement to arrive on a pre-contract agreement will also be rubber-stamped.
Finally, Antonio Rudiger’s new deal needs to be announced.
Mourinho has been pulling the strings behind these deals as he will take command of transfer policy at Real Madrid, who have sought the Portuguese for the sweeping impact he can have at a club that went off the rails last term.
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