Jose Mourinho to leave Real Madrid next month

José Mourinho will leave Real Madrid at the end of the season and is widely expected to return to Chelsea for a second term.

Mourinho’s departure was announced at a news conference Monday night in Spain, with Real Madrid’s president, Florentino Peréz, revealing the decision even though there are two games remaining on the Spanish league schedule. The move, which was agreed to by both sides, Peréz said, was hardly a surprise, as Madrid is assured of finishing the season without any major trophies — a development that led Mourinho to call this season disastrous and his “worst ever” as a coach.

“We’ve decided to bring our relationship to an end at the end of the current season,” Peréz said at the news conference. “The club and manager agree the timing is right to bring our relationship to an end. On behalf of the board of directors, I would like to thank José Mourinho for all his hard work. The team has improved in his three years, and we wish him all the best.

“After three years, we both agreed this was the correct moment to finish. With Mourinho, we made a big leap competitively and sporting-wise. Today, Madrid is where it ought to be. We had not reached that level prior to his arrival, so the balance of his stay here was positive.”