Mourinho suffers the most embarrassing blow in his management career
Robin Bairner
- 2 Dec 2023 15:00 GMT
- 3 min read
Roma head coach Jose Mourinho has suffered perhaps the most embarrassing snub of his career from Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal.
Linked with a move to the Saudi club when his contract with the Serie A side expires next summer, the Portuguese managerial legend has learned that the Saudi outfit are no longer interested in his services, according to Rudy Galetti.
Instead, Neymar’s side have elected to stick with Mourinho’s compatriot Jorge Jesus.
The news arrives less than 24 hours after Al-Hilal further cemented themselves at the top of the Saudi Pro League thanks to a comprehensive 3-0 win over Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr.
The victory was particularly celebrated by Jesus due to the absence of Neymar, with the coach commenting that he has the most balanced squad in the big-spending division.
Al-Hilal feel that the club is growing thanks to their manager and they have now decided that they want to continue with him.
Al-Nassr’s decision makes Mourinho’s future a little more difficult to predict, with the former Chelsea, Real Madrid and Manchester United manager having recently indicated that he is open to a move to Saudi Arabia.
“I’ll tell you the truth," he told Rai 2, "I think I’ll go there one day. But when I say ‘one day’ I don’t mean tomorrow or the day after.”
Mourinho still has one Saudi offer on the table
According to Galetti, the veteran boss, who has won three Premier League titles and two Champions League titles among his myriad of honours, still has a possibility open there, with Al-Ahli, another of the most financially powerful Pro League sides, still open to his arrival.
Previously, it had been reported that Mourinho had been made a “historic” offer to take command of a Saudi team.
This would have made him the best-paid coach in the league – and one of the richest in the world.
Little has been revealed in terms of the details in terms of the team that made him the offer or the length of it, but the size of Mourinho’s annual wage would have eclipsed Steven Gerrard’s €17.6m-per-year deal at Al-Ettifaq.
