José Mourinho took a meeting with Al-Ahli, but he has turned down their offer and will continue helming Roma. The parties convened in London, more precisely at the Chelsea Harbour Hotel earlier this week. The Saudi team would have covered the Portuguese coach in gold, but he declined, Leggo informs (via SportMediaset).
If he accepted, the Special One would have cashed in €120M over the next few years. But he only opened the door to some form of collaboration down the line. He’ll stay put in the Italian capital, although his extension talks haven’t gained much pace so far.
According to Sky, Mourinho had a summit with Al-Ahli out of courtesy but wasn’t really interested in their proposal. He’s more focused on his current team’s transfer market moves. Matthew O’Donohoe, the president of the agency CAA Stellar, was present at the rendezvous. His company represents Gianluca Scamacca.
Per Tuttomercatoweb, the manager won’t leave but is in no rush to prolong his contract. He’s unlikely to put pen to paper before the squad resumes practicing on July 10th. He might wait until August to assess how the reinforcement campaign has gone before committing.
Our Take on Mourinho and Al-Ahli
The Saudi money has lured high-profile players abroad but has not been effective in Italy yet. Unlike Juventus and Massimiliano Allegri, it would have been a devastating blow for Roma. It would be uncommon for a boss of his caliber to enter the season on an expiring deal, but neither he nor the team is ordinary. If anything, it’s a great tactic to apply pressure.
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