Benfica Club Chairman Rui Costa once again talked about a series of topics related to Mourinho, and he made it clear that Benfica did not have contact with Mourinho before the departure of former coach Bruno Lager.
Talking about Mourinho's inauguration
"The fans should be very happy to have such a high-level coach accept Benfica's invitation at the first time, especially considering the team's current state. We must win the game beautifully to meet the expectations of the club and the fans, and Mourinho is ready for it. He is the last coach of Manchester United to win the European trophy, and in Roma also helped the team win the European Championship for the first time.
"A victory in a match may be achieved by chance in poor performance, but the league championship will never be won by a series of poor performance games. And Mourinho has a squad that can achieve this – he praised our squad when he played against Benfica. "
Mourinho pointed out the problem of too many young players on Benfica's bench
"I talk to Mourinho every day, and he made some very normal criticisms of young players on the bench, and our two players - Alexander Ba and Manu Silva - will soon return. We do have a young bench, and this is our bold bet on the youth training system, and these young people will sooner or later enter the first team. "
Talking about transfer operations
"We have invested a lot of money and introduced high-quality international players. However, there is no perfect lineup, and if adjustments are needed in the winter window, we will act decisively. Benfica's financial situation is very stable and we are ready to improve our team's strength at any time. "
Questions about Mourinho's salary
" His salary is roughly equivalent to Schmidt, and I don't think it's reasonable to disclose our coach's salary. Of course, everyone has a curiosity and wants to know how much money your neighbors make, not to mention Benfica’s head coach.
"We understand that some cost must be paid to have a coach of this level, but we also know that Benfica cannot give him the same treatment as other clubs. Mourinho's salary is the lowest since he left Portugal."
Talking about the process of Lager's departure and Mourinho's takeover
"If it took us four or five days to not confirm the successor, people would also be irresponsible to Benfica. But we did a good job in this and started to operate actively the next day, Please find a new coach as soon as possible. I guaranteed with my reputation that I contacted Mourinho the next morning to ask for a meeting with him, and he also expressed his desire to coach Benfica, and later that day we reached an agreement. "
Talking about the fired Schmidt
"I don't think I am stubborn, I just believe that I can turn things around and go back to Schmidt's first season. I always think that his performance in the first season was not accidental, he is still an excellent coach."