The owner of Paris Saint Germain, Nasser Al Khelafi, has all but ruled out a summer move for Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho by insisting the club is fully behind current coach Carlo Ancelotti.
Speculation surrounding the future of Mourinho has been rife for much of the season following a disappointing and eventful Liga campaign that has seen the Portuguese coach come in for a great deal of criticism from certain sections of the Madrid faithful.
Mourinho recently revealed he would be sitting down with Madrid president Florentino Perez to discuss his future at the end of the season, and with former club Chelsea in search of a new manager, a return to Stamford Bridge has been mooted.
However, there has also been claims that Paris could be the 50-year-old’s next destination, claims that were enhanced when PSG chief Sheikh Bin Abdul Rahman Al-Thani said “Cristiano Ronaldo and Jose Mourinho are objectives for Paris Saint-Germain.”
But Al Khelafi has poured cold water on a summer move for Mourinho by expressing his desire to keep Ancelotti at the club.
Al Khelafi said: “Mourinho is one of the best coaches in the world, but we love Carlo and he still has another year left on his contract.”
After initially stuttering when he first took to the Parc des Princes dugout, Ancelotti has since turned PSG into a genuine European force, most recently demonstrated by their impressive performances against Barcelona when they were unfortunate to be eliminated on away goals.
Meanwhile, PSG have asserted their domestic dominance; leading Ligue 1 by seven points with seven games remaining while they are overwhelming favourites to progress to the Coupe de France semi-finals when they face Evian TG on Wednesday.
With Ancelotti remaining at PSG, Chelsea appear to be the most likely destination should Mourinho decide to leave the Santiago Bernabeu at the end of the season.
The Blues are in the market for a new head coach and chairman Bruce Buck refused to rule out an approach for Mourinho when quizzed about the club’s search.
He said: “I am completely open minded about it.”
READ MORE:
– Mourinho plans Real Madrid talks as Chelsea remain coy on manager plans
– Real Madrid legend Salgado convinced Mourinho will leave – Champions League win or not
– Mourinho targets England return and admits “love” for Chelsea
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