Benfica Plans for Life After Mourinho with Marco Silva

Benfica are drawing up a plan for life after José Mourinho, and at the top of it sits Marco Silva.

With Real Madrid pushing to bring Mourinho back to the Bernabéu, Benfica are braced for the possibility of losing the 63-year-old less than a year after he walked through the door in Lisbon. Madrid have made him their preferred option and talks have already taken place over a reunion with the former Chelsea and Manchester United manager.

Benfica do not want this to end quickly. Mourinho was hired in September to restore their edge at home and abroad, and the club hierarchy would prefer stability over another reset. But they also know how the game works when Madrid call. So a contingency is being built, and Silva is central to it.

Silva at a crossroads

Silva’s situation at Fulham gives Benfica a sliver of hope. Fulham have put a new contract on the table, keen to keep the 48-year-old who dragged them out of the Championship in 2022 and has kept them clear of the relegation churn since. He has given the club an identity and a level of consistency they had lacked.

Yet the ceiling is starting to show. Fulham have flirted with European spots but struggled to sustain any serious challenge over a full season. The question for Silva is whether he has taken this project as far as it can realistically go.

Benfica can offer something Fulham cannot: Champions League football and a shot at domestic titles every year. They sit second to Porto in Portugal and see Silva as a coach capable of blending their academy talent with experienced signings, while maintaining the attacking style demanded at the Estádio da Luz.

For Silva, a return to Portugal with a club of Benfica’s scale would mark a step back into the European elite. That prospect, more than any contract figure, is what could tempt him away from London.

Chelsea watching the same man

Benfica are not alone. Chelsea have also placed Silva on their shortlist as they search for a new manager after sacking Liam Rosenior last month. The London club intend to wait until the season ends before making their move, preferring a clean break and a full pre-season under a new head coach.

At Stamford Bridge, though, Silva is not the only name in bold. Xabi Alonso is regarded as their ideal candidate.

Alonso, who guided Bayer Leverkusen to the Bundesliga title in 2024, has been out of work since his dismissal by Madrid this season. His stock remains high. His Leverkusen side played with control, clarity and aggression, and those qualities still appeal to the Chelsea hierarchy.

The Spaniard is understood to favour a move to England for his next job and has been on Chelsea’s radar for at least three years. That long-term admiration has not faded, even with his abrupt exit from Madrid.

Liverpool are also in the background. Should they decide to part company with Arne Slot, Alonso’s name will come up again, this time linked to a club where he is already a modern icon.

So the managerial carousel is loaded and waiting. If Madrid prise Mourinho away from Benfica, it could trigger a chain reaction stretching from Lisbon to London and back to Merseyside, with Marco Silva and Xabi Alonso at the heart of the summer’s next big decisions.