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Insight from Portugal
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José Mourinho is on course to record a historic campaign with Benfica but it’s anything but rosy at the Lisbon giants. With just six games left in the Liga Portugal, Benfica remain undefeated and on the brink of a famous invincible season. As Águias have won 19 of their 28 games, drawing eight but it’s those stalemates that have led to significant unrest. Only seven clubs have progressed through their entire league season without losing this century, including Porto twice.
And while Benfica could yet add their name to that illustrious list, Mourinho has lambasted his players with supporters beginning to turn on the iconic manager. The Special One is always box-office and one of the greatest managers in history but his latest rant at his own players were reminiscent of his time at Manchester United. The 63-year-old’s unhappiness after the damaging draw against Casa Pia was justified as it effectively ended their title hopes as they trail leaders Porto by seven points, but it remains incredibly unusual for there to be such disharmony around a club who could become ‘invincibles’. To ascertain expert insight on Benfica and Mourinho, we’ve spoken to Gonçalo Tristão Santos, Transfermarkt’s Area Manager for Portugal.
The view from Portugal on Benfica and Mourinho
Currently, Mourinho is going through a difficult situation at Benfica and is starting to face criticism. This draw against Casa Pia was the final straw for some supporters. Mourinho completely tore into some of his players. He was extremely aggressive, it was a surreal press conference. It is true that Benfica are still unbeaten in the league this season, but they sit in third place and have already recorded nine draws in the competition. In other words, Benfica are not losing in the league, but they are having serious difficulties winning certain matches, which is why they are already seven points behind leaders Porto.
Mourinho himself has already thrown in the towel in the title race, but Benfica still have a very important goal this season: finishing in second place. This is because, this season, the team that finishes first in the Portuguese league qualifies directly for the Champions League, the second-placed side goes into the third qualifying round, and the third-placed team drops into the Europa League. So, it is definitely not the same thing to finish second or third, and that could define a large part of the club’s short-term future. At the moment, Benfica are two points behind second-placed Sporting CP, but the Lions have one game less.
Could Mourinho leave Benfica this summer?
Another important detail is that Mourinho is under contract with Benfica until June 2027, meaning until the end of next season. However, when the two parties signed the deal, a clause was included to make it easier for Mourinho to leave at the end of this season upon payment of only part of his remaining salary, meaning at a lower cost for the club.
This happened because Benfica held presidential elections in October and, had Rui Costa not won, the new president would have had an easier path to dismiss him if he was not part of the plans. But Rui Costa did win the election, and now we will see whether he himself takes advantage of that clause to sack Mourinho without having to pay him a full year’s salary. The relationship between Mourinho and Rui Costa has seen better days and I think the team’s performances in this final stretch of the season could be decisive for the coach’s future at the club.
