José Mourinho has finally broken his silence amidst strong rumours linking him with the top job at Manchester United. However, the Portuguese manager insists that he is ‘not looking’ for a club at present.
The former Chelsea boss has continued to feature on the back pages of England’s major newspapers even after his dismissal, with many now suggesting that his appointment at Manchester United in the summer is a mere formality.
However, Mourinho insisted that he is not looking for a club at present, and that he is in fact courting offers from clubs looking to hire him. The 53-year-old refused to be drawn on the United links, but did rule out a return to his former team Inter Milan.
Mourinho is quoted by La Stampa (via Sky Sports) as saying: “My next club? I really do not know, but one thing is certain – I love football and I will return with the same passion and ambition I’ve always had.
“Right now I have respect for every coach at every club. I’m not looking for a club, but there are clubs that are looking for me,” said Mourinho. “There is one thing I want to clarify – I will not be directing things over there next season. Inter already have a project that belongs to Roberto Mancini and Erick Thohir.
“Their ideas have my full support and I hope their plans are successful. I want to see Inter fans smiling again and so I hope to witness a victory tomorrow [Saturday].”
Mourinho’s Machiavellian mastery evident in latest comments
José Mourinho has always had the incredible ability to talk about an issue while explicitly claiming that he does not want to talk about it. It was evident in an interview he gave as Real Madrid manager where he denounced the involvement of politics in the FIFA Ballon d’Or award process, before toeing Los Blancos‘ political line and making an argument for why Ronaldo should win the award. It is once more evident in his latest comments.
Mourinho’s emphatic rejection of the Inter Milan rumours was, even if on a subliminal level, a signal to Manchester United — a reminder that he is currently out of contract and there for the taking. While the Portuguese claims to retain his counsel out of respect for his professional colleagues, the Mourinho camp has been quietly putting pressure on the Manchester United hierarchy and leaking stories about the Portuguese to the press.
There is only one way this story is likely to end, and that is with Mourinho on the Old Trafford hot-seat.
