{"id":579,"date":"2026-05-19T09:59:19","date_gmt":"2026-05-19T06:59:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/"},"modified":"2026-05-19T09:59:19","modified_gmt":"2026-05-19T06:59:19","slug":"real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/","title":{"rendered":"Real Madrid Reappoint Mourinho to Restore Order After Trophyless Season"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Real Madrid have decided to reappoint Jose Mourinho 13 years after his initial stint, aiming to restore structure in a squad that has been pulled into off-pitch drama following a disappointing campaign without silverware.<\/p>\n<p>An official confirmation is expected after Real Madrid\u2019s last match of the season against Athletic Club on Sunday. Mourinho, whose agreement contains a provision that could extend his stay by another year, is then expected to be presented in Madrid next week.<\/p>\n<p>Alvaro Arbeloa has been handling first-team affairs on a temporary basis since Xabi Alonso was dismissed in January, with the change coming seven months into his tenure. Mourinho will be looking to deliver better results than two of his former players who previously attempted to manage at the club.<\/p>\n<p>Mourinho concluded his season with Benfica on Saturday, guiding the team to a 3-1 victory over Estoril to secure third place in the Liga Portugal standings, with an unbeaten league run across the campaign.<\/p>\n<p>A release provision within Mourinho\u2019s two-year Benfica contract, which was signed only eight months ago, gives him the ability to leave for \u00a32.6m. Sky Sports News reports that Mourinho is expected to bring four members of his coaching team from Benfica to the Bernabeu.<\/p>\n<p>Mourinho\u2019s ties with Real Madrid president Florentino Perez are well established, dating back to his first spell in charge at the club.<\/p>\n<p>Jorge Mendes, Mourinho\u2019s agent, has helped coordinate the move between Perez and Real Madrid for the coach.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Real Madrid have decided to reappoint Jose Mourinho 13 years after his initial stint, aiming to restore structure in a squad that has been pulled into off-pitch drama following a disappointing campaign without silverware. An official confirmation is expected after Real Madrid\u2019s last match of the season against Athletic Club on Sunday. Mourinho, whose agreement [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":578,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"Real Madrid Reappoint Mourinho to Regain Control","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Real Madrid\u2019s shock call brings Jose Mourinho back to restore discipline and structure after a trophyless season, with confirmatio","mma_seo_breadcrumb_text":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_url":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_hide_ui":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_labels":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-579","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Real Madrid Reappoint Mourinho to Regain Control<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Real Madrid\u2019s shock call brings Jose Mourinho back to restore discipline and structure after a trophyless season, with confirmatio\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Real Madrid Reappoint Mourinho to Regain Control\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Real Madrid\u2019s shock call brings Jose Mourinho back to restore discipline and structure after a trophyless season, with confirmatio\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Zalebs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-19T06:59:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/mourinho-agrees-real-madrid-return-38b1.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"942\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"521\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Zibuyile Dladla\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Zibuyile Dladla\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Zibuyile Dladla\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e\"},\"headline\":\"Real Madrid Reappoint Mourinho to Restore Order After Trophyless Season\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-19T06:59:19+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":255,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/mourinho-agrees-real-madrid-return-38b1.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Sports\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\\\/\",\"name\":\"Real Madrid Reappoint Mourinho to Regain Control\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/mourinho-agrees-real-madrid-return-38b1.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-19T06:59:19+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e\"},\"description\":\"Real Madrid\u2019s shock call brings Jose Mourinho back to restore discipline and structure after a trophyless season, with confirmatio\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/mourinho-agrees-real-madrid-return-38b1.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/mourinho-agrees-real-madrid-return-38b1.webp\",\"width\":942,\"height\":521},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Real Madrid Reappoint Mourinho to Restore Order After Trophyless Season\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/\",\"name\":\"Zalebs\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e\",\"name\":\"Zibuyile Dladla\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Zibuyile Dladla\"},\"description\":\"Zibuyile began her media journey as a sales intern at Mediamark (Kagiso Media) before moving into digital content creation for ZAlebs.com. Over four years, she helped evolve the platform from a simple blog into one of South Africa\u2019s leading independent entertainment news sites. Following ZAlebs\u2019 transition to Celebrity Worx in 2016, Zibuyile was promoted to Executive Editor, recognized for her sharp audience insight and ability to match editorial with branded content. Highlights of her time include a Bookmark Award nomination, judging TLC\u2019s Next Great Presenter, reporting from the MTV EMAs, and building partnerships with radio stations like YFM, Cliff Central, and Good Hope FM. Her editorial work also expanded to include fast-growing digital verticals\u2014such as lifestyle tech, online entertainment, and gambling-related content\u2014tailored to evolving reader interests and brand opportunities.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/za.linkedin.com\\\/in\\\/zibuyile-dladla-9a26628a\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/zalebs.com\\\/news\\\/author\\\/zibuyile-dladla\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Real Madrid Reappoint Mourinho to Regain Control","description":"Real Madrid\u2019s shock call brings Jose Mourinho back to restore discipline and structure after a trophyless season, with confirmatio","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Real Madrid Reappoint Mourinho to Regain Control","og_description":"Real Madrid\u2019s shock call brings Jose Mourinho back to restore discipline and structure after a trophyless season, with confirmatio","og_url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/","og_site_name":"Zalebs","article_published_time":"2026-05-19T06:59:19+00:00","og_image":[{"width":942,"height":521,"url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/mourinho-agrees-real-madrid-return-38b1.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"author":"Zibuyile Dladla","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Zibuyile Dladla","Est. reading time":"1 minute"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/"},"author":{"name":"Zibuyile Dladla","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e"},"headline":"Real Madrid Reappoint Mourinho to Restore Order After Trophyless Season","datePublished":"2026-05-19T06:59:19+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/"},"wordCount":255,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/mourinho-agrees-real-madrid-return-38b1.webp","articleSection":["Sports"],"inLanguage":"en-ZA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/","url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/","name":"Real Madrid Reappoint Mourinho to Regain Control","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/mourinho-agrees-real-madrid-return-38b1.webp","datePublished":"2026-05-19T06:59:19+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e"},"description":"Real Madrid\u2019s shock call brings Jose Mourinho back to restore discipline and structure after a trophyless season, with confirmatio","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-ZA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/mourinho-agrees-real-madrid-return-38b1.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/mourinho-agrees-real-madrid-return-38b1.webp","width":942,"height":521},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/real-madrid-reappoint-mourinho-to-restore-order-after-trophyless-season\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Real Madrid Reappoint Mourinho to Restore Order After Trophyless Season"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/","name":"Zalebs","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-ZA"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/6da1a9a659a2b9fb37587bf050637d1e","name":"Zibuyile Dladla","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1f581f0bb57ed4fd97eeb8353242d5a3c12548c2ff26373e9e5be1e00d4fad05?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Zibuyile Dladla"},"description":"Zibuyile began her media journey as a sales intern at Mediamark (Kagiso Media) before moving into digital content creation for ZAlebs.com. Over four years, she helped evolve the platform from a simple blog into one of South Africa\u2019s leading independent entertainment news sites. Following ZAlebs\u2019 transition to Celebrity Worx in 2016, Zibuyile was promoted to Executive Editor, recognized for her sharp audience insight and ability to match editorial with branded content. Highlights of her time include a Bookmark Award nomination, judging TLC\u2019s Next Great Presenter, reporting from the MTV EMAs, and building partnerships with radio stations like YFM, Cliff Central, and Good Hope FM. Her editorial work also expanded to include fast-growing digital verticals\u2014such as lifestyle tech, online entertainment, and gambling-related content\u2014tailored to evolving reader interests and brand opportunities.","sameAs":["https:\/\/za.linkedin.com\/in\/zibuyile-dladla-9a26628a"],"url":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/author\/zibuyile-dladla\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/579","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=579"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/579\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/578"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=579"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=579"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zalebs.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=579"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}