Despite rumors swirling of a potential return to the Bernabéu touchline, José Mourinho emphasized he has not “had any contact” with Real Madrid. After a nightmare 2025–26 season, Los Blancos are actively searching for a new manager who can turn a fractured squad back into a team worthy of silverware. Álvaro Arbeloa failed his audition after taking over for Xabi Alonso in January, and it seems only a matter of time before the club announces his exit and subsequent successor. Recent reports hail Mourinho as the frontrunner for the job, but the Portuguese boss struck down any talk of a Real Madrid return ahead of Benfica’s bout with Braga. “I want to clarify one thing,” Mourinho said in his prematch press conference. “In football, it’s not the players who decide whether to leave or stay. When something happens, it’s the clubs that decide whether or not to initiate the process of signing the players they want.…