António Figueiredo clear on Benfica's manager for 2026/27 | OneFootball

António Figueiredo defended the continuation of José Mourinho as Benfica’s head coach in 2026/27, arguing that stability should prevail during a delicate period for the Club. The former Benfica vice-president admits that the season’s results fell short of expectations, but believes that another change on the bench could further worsen the club’s internal instability, at a time when Marco Silva has been linked with the Eagles.

Speaking to ‘Record’, he explained that his position is not based solely on the titles won this season: “I would like Mourinho to stay at Benfica, and I’m not even analyzing the results because, this year, the only thing Benfica has in the trophy room is the Super Cup... won by Bruno Lage. My motivation for Mourinho to continue has to do with stability,” he said.

The former director also reinforced the idea that the Club needs continuity to return to the top of Portuguese football: “Constantly changing coach, president and directors does not solve situations. If I were only analyzing the results, I would, right now, be praying for Bruno Lage’s return.”

Despite the criticism of Benfica’s season, António Figueiredo refused to question Mourinho’s value, arguing that the coach’s track record remains intact: “The results were not encouraging, but they do not take away a comma from José Mourinho’s résumé, built by him throughout his career,” he stressed on CMTV.

António Figueiredo also took the opportunity to dismiss the idea that the squad has shortcomings, pointing to the growth of Andreas Schjelderup: “The team is not unbalanced at all, Benfica have an excellent squad. The players just need playing time and confidence. Just look at the example of Schjelderup, who four months ago was supposed to be sold and is now Benfica’s best player”, he concluded.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.