José Mourinho has denied any interest in taking over at Real Madrid, stating he wishes to stay as Manchester United manager beyond his current contract, which ends in the summer of 2020.
Reports in Spain have claimed Mourinho is seen by Real as a replacement for Julen Lopetegui following the European champions’ disappointing start to the season. They sit seventh in La Liga, four points behind the leaders Barcelona, following Saturday’s 2-1 home defeat to Levante.
Yet asked about potentially becoming Real manager for a second time having managed the club between 2010-2013, Mourinho said: “No. My future is here – I have a contract and until the final of my contract I only think about Manchester United. I am happy to stay here longer than that.”
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Speaking in the runup to United’s Champions League group encounter with Juventus at Old Trafford on Tuesday, Mourinho explained why his captain, Antonio Valencia, has been left out of recent squads. “The reason was that he was 10 days without training with a problem, not an injury but a problem that he had – a very complicated surgery on his mouth,” the 55-year-old said. “And 10 days without training needed a little bit of time to recover some level after that.”