LISBON, Portugal (BN24) — Jose Mourinho has declared his interest in returning to Benfica, nearly 25 years after his brief first spell at the club, following the sacking of head coach Bruno Lage on Tuesday night.
Benfica dismissed Lage just hours after a stunning 3-2 home defeat to Qarabag in the UEFA Champions League group stage. The result marked one of the most shocking losses in the Portuguese club’s recent European history, as the two-time European champions squandered a 2-0 lead in front of their home fans in Lisbon.
Mourinho, who was fired by Turkish club Fenerbahce last month, arrived in the Portuguese capital on Wednesday and confirmed that Benfica had approached him to discuss a possible return.
“Benfica officially asked me if I was interested,” Mourinho told reporters after landing at Lisbon Airport. “What coach says no to Benfica? Not me.”
The 62-year-old, who began his head coaching career with Benfica in 2000, said he did not hesitate to express his willingness to take over the team once again.
“When I was presented with the opportunity to coach Benfica, I didn’t hesitate to say that I’m interested, that I’d like to,” he added.
Though the club has not yet officially announced Mourinho as Lage’s successor, Benfica president Rui Costa said on Tuesday night that the team expects to have a new head coach in place before Saturday’s league fixture against AVS.
Lage, a former Wolverhampton Wanderers manager, returned to Benfica in 2023 for a second stint after previously guiding the team to the Primeira Liga title in 2019. However, pressure had been mounting after the club dropped its first league points of the season at Santa Clara over the weekend, and Tuesday’s Champions League loss proved decisive.
“Now all I can do is wish good luck to whoever comes next,” Lage said as he left the club’s training facility. “I don’t know if Mr. Mourinho will be confirmed or not. The important thing is that he’s a man who knows Benfica very well.”
Mourinho previously managed Benfica for just 11 games in 2000 before a dispute with club leadership led to his departure. He then impressed at Uniao de Leiria and moved to Porto, where he launched one of the most successful managerial careers of the modern era. His spell at Porto included back-to-back league titles and a Champions League triumph in 2004.
That success led Mourinho to high-profile jobs at Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid, and later Manchester United, where his managerial fortunes began to wane. His most recent tenure at Fenerbahce ended just two days after a Champions League qualifying loss to Benfica.
Benfica’s dramatic collapse against Qarabag—an Azerbaijani team that has never advanced past the Champions League group stage—sparked immediate unrest among supporters and forced the club’s board into swift action.
While Mourinho’s return is not yet official, anticipation is already building across Portugal. His potential appointment would mark a symbolic homecoming for the coach who once began his journey in Lisbon and now, decades later, may be called upon to restore the club’s shaken European ambitions.
