Mourinho's Return to Real Madrid in Final Countdown: Official Announcement Expected within Hours, Reports AS

The announcement of the Portuguese manager joining Real Madrid is expected within the next few hours. José Mourinho will be unveiled shortly and will immediately begin preparing for the club's new project.

Florentino Pérez’s first move after winning the Real Madrid presidential election is to officially finalize the operations regarding Mourinho. The deal had already been structured beforehand and remained pending during the two-week election period. Real Madrid will sign the contract with Mourinho within the next few hours, following a comprehensive agreement reached between the two parties weeks ago.

Regarding Benfica, it has been confirmed in recent hours that Real Madrid will pay €15 million, an amount equivalent to Mourinho's gross salary for one season. Florentino’s campaign team also uploaded a video of Mourinho on social media, with the caption: "Yes, Florentino Pérez has won the election." To which Mourinho replied: "Yes, of course..."



The Negotiations and Contract Details

The clause allowing Mourinho to leave Benfica for €7 million expired on May 26. The Real Madrid presidential election delayed the operation. Despite mediation from Jorge Mendes, Benfica maintained a firm stance and ultimately demanded that Real Madrid pay the full €15 million—equivalent to Mourinho's gross annual pre-tax salary. Marco Silva, the former Fulham manager who is also represented by Jorge Mendes, is set to succeed Mourinho at Benfica.

Mourinho will sign a two-season contract with Real Madrid. If he leads the team to a La Liga title, the contract will automatically be extended for an additional year.

The Ultimate Goal: Champions League Glory
Mourinho's primary objective in returning to Real Madrid—and the reason he accepted this challenge—is to win the UEFA Champions League.

During his first stint with Real Madrid from 2010 to 2013, Mourinho won:

1 La Liga title
1 Copa del Rey
1 Spanish Super Cup

However, failing to win Europe's ultimate club trophy after three consecutive Champions League semifinal appearances remained a lingering regret. Nonetheless, Florentino Pérez has always acknowledged that it was Mourinho who laid the foundation for the club's subsequent success, which saw Real Madrid lift the "Big Ears" trophy 6 times in the following 11 Champions League seasons.

Transfer Demands and Squad Rebuilding
The announcement of Mourinho as the new Real Madrid manager is imminent, as is his official presentation. Mourinho is eager to get to work immediately, fully aware that the two-week election period has cost valuable time, and the club needs to start moving forward with his desired signings.

As previously reported by AS, Mourinho has already submitted his transfer requests to the club. Real Madrid has plenty of work ahead to secure his targets:
One to two center-backs
One right-backOne left-back
Two midfielders (one playmaker and one defensive midfielder)

More importantly, Mourinho has communicated the specific profile of players he wants to recruit. The Portuguese coach does not want superstars; instead, he desires hungry, hard-working, and high-intensity players who possess fighting spirit and less personal baggage. This stance is very explicit.

Some of Mourinho's targeted transfers are already well underway. For instance, center-back Ibrahima Konaté could join on a free transfer after his contract with Liverpool expires, following the successful blueprints of David Alaba and Antonio Rüdiger. For the right-back position, Inter Milan's Denzel Dumfries has also been heavily linked.