LISBON – Former Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has ruled himself out of the vacant job at Benfica, saying he has no intention of coaching in his native Portugal for the time being.
Mourinho was sacked by United last month after two-and-a-half years in charge of the Premier League club.
“I haven’t received an offer and even if I did, obviously the president of Benfica and the club itself would be the first to know my decision,” he told the website of the Correo da Manha newspaper.
“(But) I think I can say that today, I don’t have any intention of coming back to work in Portugal,” he said.
“I am fine at the moment. Today, I am not an option for Benfica, nothing more than that.”
Benfica coach Rui Vitoria left the club by mutual consent last Thursday.
Mourinho said he did not want to talk about his dismissal by United.
“I have learned that, when you leave a club, you don’t go around talking about it, you don’t wash your dirty laundry in public.
“The chapter is finished, and you don’t go around making criticism,” he said.
“The other thing I have learned is to respect the clubs who want me, and those who don’t want me.”
Mourinho began his coaching career in 2000 at Benfica, but was in charge for only nine games before spells at Porto, Chelsea, Real Madrid and Inter Milan.