Jose Mourinho is open to a return to one of his former clubs, even suggesting a third spell at Chelsea would not be a problem. The Portuguese has been out of work since leaving Manchester United in December and is keeping his options open ahead of a return to management.
The 56-year-old is being linked with another sting in charge of Real Madrid after the Spanish side crashed out of the Champions League to Ajax on Tuesday.
Mourinho won La Liga with ‘Los Blancos’ in 2012 and would be happy to return to the Santiago Bernabeu to replace current boss Santiago Solari.
‘Rumours are rumours,’ Mourinho told Spanish television channel Cuatro. ‘If you asked me if I have a problem returning to [Real] Madrid one day, I don’t. I don’t have a problem returning to Chelsea, to Porto, to Inter, to any of the clubs I’ve been at.
‘It’s a nice feeling to be liked, especially somewhere where you have been before. It’s a nice feeling but as I’ve said before, the only club where I’ve been before that has invited me to return was Chelsea and not Madrid.’
Mourinho may be open to a reunion with a former employer, but he is also keen to try his hand at a new division.
‘The Special One’ has won league titles in Portugal, England, Italy and Spain and is intrigued by the prospect of adding to that list of achievements.
‘Now I’m open to even work in a country that I’ve never worked before, to try out a different culture and win a league in a fifth different country. But I’m calm now,’ Mourinho continued. ‘I hope I don’t return to work [in coaching] until June.’