José Mourinho has been confirmed as Benfica’s head coach on a contract until the summer of 2027, with a break clause at the end of this season. His fourth game, on 30 September, will take him back to his former club Chelsea in the Champions League.
The 62-year-old takes over from Bruno Lage, who was sacked after Benfica’s 3-2 Champions League defeat by Qarabag on Tuesday. Benfica said in a statement that a break clause would allow the club or Mourinho to end his deal in the 10 days after their final game of this campaign.
Benfica are to hold a presidential election in October and Mourinho indicated at his presentation press conference that the unusual contract clause was inserted with that in mind.
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“It’s a contract with great ethics behind it,” he said. “I only signed it; I wasn’t the one who drew it up – it was outlined by the club’s management and my collaborators. Of course, I only sign what pleases me, but [the contract] has a tremendous ethical concept. From the club’s side, there is a huge respect for the elections and the members. That’s something to praise; it touched me that the contract was directed towards this ethics.
“The day after the elections, I will be the coach of Benfica. The presence of this ethical side gives me a freedom that, under other conditions, wouldn’t exist. I want to work at Benfica, but I also wish for people to trust me.”
Mourinho addressed the current president, Rui Costa, as he spoke of his excitement at taking the job. “I have so many emotions but experience helps me control them,” he said. “I want to thank you for the trust and the honour I feel in this moment. There isn’t a single person who doesn’t know the size of the Benfica nation and this club. I want to make one thing absolutely clear: I must be able to block all these emotions and look at Sport Lisboa e Benfica in a simplistic way. I am the coach of one of the biggest clubs in the world.”
Mourinho had been out of work since he left Fenerbahce in late August after being beaten by Benfica in a Champions League qualifier. He was briefly in charge at Benfica in 2000 but came to prominence with Porto before taking jobs including Inter, Real Madrid and Manchester United.
His first game is in the league on Saturday at struggling AVS. Benfica are sixth, five points behind the leaders, Porto, with a game in hand. They have given Mourinho his 12th head coach’s role and his first in his homeland since 2004.