Jose Mourinho Returns to Real Madrid on Three-Year Deal
Jose Mourinho has signed a three-year deal to begin a second spell as Real Madrid manager, returning to the Bernabeu 13 years after his first stint in charge.
The 63-year-old is back in Spanish football with a clear brief: end Real’s two-season wait for a major trophy and restore the club’s usual challenge on every front.
What Mourinho inherits
Real possess an elite attacking group, led by Kylian Mbappe, with Jude Bellingham and Vinicius Junior among the other standout names. The issue for Mourinho will be turning that individual quality into a united, consistently successful side.
The Blancos have already started another Champions League campaign, but their Liga position has brought early pressure. Barcelona hold a six-point advantage over their Clasico rivals.
- Mourinho previously won La Liga during his first Real Madrid spell, when his side were competing with Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona.
- He has since added to a managerial career featuring trophy success in Portugal, England, Italy and Spain, following jobs including Chelsea, Inter and Manchester United.
- Real have now turned back to him after a difficult period in which the club have gone without a major honour and seen several managerial appointments fail to deliver the intended results.
- His immediate challenge is to impose a structure on a squad containing major personalities and ensure the players commit to his methods.
Cole backs Mourinho to handle Madrid pressure
Joe Cole, who worked under Mourinho after emerging from Chelsea’s academy, believes his former manager still has the authority and ability required for the role.
Cole said Mourinho’s start may not be straightforward, stressing that success at a new club takes time to build. He added that Mourinho has sometimes delivered immediate results in the past, but argued that this Madrid group requires careful man-management because of the different egos within it.
He described Mourinho as a father-figure presence for many players and said the Portuguese coach knows the scale of the task, having managed the club before.
Cole remains confident that Mourinho can return Real to winning ways, but said the squad must accept the manager’s plan. In his view, Mourinho must find a way to bring the group together before the club can revive its glory years.
What happens next
- Real Madrid host Villarreal on Saturday as Mourinho looks to cut the gap in the Liga title race.
- Their next European assignment takes Mourinho to Italy, where Real will face his former club Roma.
- With supporters and the board expecting challenges for every available trophy, results will quickly define the opening phase of Mourinho’s second Madrid reign.
