Mourinho flirts with future

Jose-MourinhoMadrid, March 25 : The future of Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho continues to be the question of speculation in the Spanish press following a hectic weekend for the Portuguese.

Mourinho was in his home town of Setubal Saturday where he accepted a homage to celebrate his 50th birthday before making some enigmatic declarations over his future, reports Xinhua.

"Everyone knows I have an adventurous spirit. It is not easy for my family but we will see what happens. After working in England, Portugal, Italy and Spain it is not easy to them (his family) to try a new destination. It could be that I repeat my destination. There are things that could be on the point of happening that nobody's could imagine," said Mourinho, who has a contract with Real Madrid until the summer of 2016, hinting he could return to either England or Italy.

There is speculation in Spain and also in England that Mourinho will nevertheless leave Real Madrid this summer with the Premier League his most likely destination and those believing he could return to Chelsea, where he spent over three years, winning two Premier League titles, two League Cups and the FA Cup during his time in England.

Once again the speculation was fuelled by Mourinho taking advantage of his weekend off to travel from Portugal to London, where he was photographed shopping in the famous department store Harrods.

Rui San Lemos, a coach in the youth system at Porto, another of Mourinho's former clubs, posted a photo of Chelsea's Stamford Bridge ground with the caption 'Mourinho's home for next season".

That was quickly denied by Mourinho's former spokesman Elando Parames but a denial now is like trying to put out a forest fire with a single bucket of water. Everyone knows that Chelsea's interim coach Rafael Benitez will leave Stamford Bridge at the end of the season and that Chelsea owner Roman Abrahamovich needs a replacement and the Russian knows the club has never known true stability since he sacked Mourinho in September 2007.

The Chelsea fans still sing Mourinho's name and after being criticised for signing the unpopular Benitez. Bringing Mourinho back to the fold would be the perfect way to get them back on his side. Meanwhile, Mourinho, who has always said he misses the Premier League, would return knowing he can forget the tiresome club politics at Real Madrid and go to a club where he would have complete control.(IANS)