Chelsea: Real Madrid wanted Jose Mourinho as new coach; Rafael Benitez wasn’t first choice

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Former Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon has admitted that the club attempted to bring Jose Mourinho back to the Bernabeu before appointing Rafael Benitez during the summer.

Carlo Ancelotti was dismissed as Blancos boss during the offseason, only a year after winning the Champions League, after failing to bring silverware to the Bernabeu.

The club ultimately appointed Madrid native Benitez, who spent last season with Napoli, but Calderon has since admitted that they attempted to bring Mourinho to the Spanish capital.

“After the departure of Carlo Ancelotti, Real tried to make Jose Mourinho come back,” Calderon revealed, as per Le 10 Sport, “but that wasn’t possible because he stayed at Chelsea.

“They even tried to make Joachim Low and Jurgen Klopp come, then they chose Benitez.”

To date, the former Liverpool manager has made an encouraging start to life as Real coach, despite employing something of a defensive strategy. The team have won six and draw three of their nine league games of the campaign so far.

Heading into this weekend’s fixtures, the Merengues sit atop the Spanish top flight, equal on points with eternal rivals Barcelona.

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Klopp, of course, ended up replacing Brendan Rodgers as Liverpool coach when the Reds lost patience with the Northern Irish manager, while Mourinho himself is finding himself under intense pressure due to Chelsea’s miserable start to the Premier League campaign.

Perhaps the Portuguese coach would have been better off considering the appeal of his former club!

 

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