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Real Madrid’s Alvaro Arbeloa gave his blessing to former coach Jose Mourinho on Saturday amid intense speculation that the Portuguese coach will replace him and begin a second spell at the European powerhouse.
Speaking like a coach who knows his days are numbered, Arbeloa told reporters in Madrid on Saturday that “if he (Mourinho) is the one who is here next season, I will be happy to see him back home.”
Arbeloa played for Madrid when Mourinho was in charge from 2010 to 2013, a tumultuous era in which Madrid won Spanish League titles and the Copa del Rey but were overshadowed by Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona great. Mourinho’s abrasive attitude towards opponents such as Guardiola, as well as some of his own players, put off many in Spain. He also had his loyal followers, like Arbeloa and some unconditional followers.
Madrid sports papers are rife with rumors that Mourinho is the leading candidate to replace Arbeloa, who was always seen as a caretaker coach after he was promoted from the club’s reserve team mid-season to replace the sacked Xabi Alonso.
(Photo by Bruno de Carvalho/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Second-place Madrid has two more Spanish league games left to play this campaign, which will end without a major title. They visit Sevilla on Sunday and conclude the season at home against Athletic Bilbao on May 23.
The 15-time European Cup winners have been embarrassed in recent weeks by a series of unseemly developments. There was a fight between players and a defeat in Barcelona that allowed their fierce rival to take the league title. Kylian Mbappé was also booed by fans, while the star striker publicly criticized Arbeloa for not playing with him more.
Club president Florentino Pérez added to the sense of a club in crisis by holding a press conference to announce that he would call an early election, which he is expected to win, while criticizing the media for what he saw as a campaign to force him to resign.
Perez is expected to make a coaching change soon and understandably believes Mourinho’s strong personality is what the team needs.
Mourinho, who led Porto and Inter Milan to Champions League titles in 2004 and 2010, will finish his season with Benfica this weekend. The 63-year-old coach said on Friday that he had received an offer from the Lisbon club to continue, but that he will decide his future in the coming days.
When asked what he thought about Mourinho’s possible return, Arbeloa reiterated similar praise he has lavished on Mourinho on other occasions.
“For me as a player, and especially as a Madrid fan, I feel and think that he is number one,” said Arbeloa.
Information from The Associated Press.
