MADRID, Spain, January 24 – Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho is fed up with bad relations in the dressing room and repeated losses to Barcelona and wants to leave at the end of the season, the sporting press said Tuesday.
“Mourinho has let it be known to the people around him that he would like to leave before June 30,” said the front-page headline of Madrid-based sports daily AS.
On the same page, splashed alongside a photo of a grumpy looking Mourinho in black tracksuit, the paper added: “Mr Indispensable becomes Mr Mysterious.”
Barcelona-based daily Mundo Deportivo said the story that emerged of Mourinho’s possible exit at the end of the season would not be his first such threat.
Mourinho used the same tactic to convince the club to give him an extra striker last season, Mundo Deportivo said.
According to AS, Mourinho met after Real Madrid’s victory over Athletic Bilbao on Sunday with Real Madrid president Florentino Perez and managing director Jose Angel Sanchez.
“The Portuguese told those close to him that at the end of the season he is going, whatever happens,” the paper said.
According to AS, Mourinho was fed up with the whistles he received from fans in the Bernabeu despite Madrid’s victory, a split with the team and his treatment by the Spanish press.
The paper even interpreted Mourinho’s dress sense as a sign of departure, saying he had eschewed Madrid’s official clothing in favour of attire by his personal sponsor Porsche, “a brand that is a direct competitor with Real Madrid sponsor Audi”.
Clouds have gathered over the team since their 1-2 home loss to Barcelona in the Spanish Cup quarter-finals last week, their third loss in four matches with Barcelona this season.
On Sunday, the biggest selling daily Marca said Mourinho berated his team for their attitude after the loss to Barcelona, further raising tensions with players.
Real Madrid head to Barcelona on Wednesday for the return match in the Spanish Cup quarter-finals.
