Perhaps a Bridge too far

Jose Mourinho. Maybe it's because box office matters. And much as the footballing hipsters laud the likes of Borussia Dortmund manager Jurgen Klopp and players Mario Goetze and Ilkay Gundogan, the mixture of blue blood and football celebrity that marks Real and their manager is irresistible to the media.

And so, speculation over where Mourinho will pitch up next trumps most everything else. In many ways, he prompted this himself post-match. There was no real inquest in his choices – in terms of both tactics and personnel – over the two legs of the semi-final. Instead, it was the usual lightning rod: all about him. He talked about wanting to go "where he was loved", "where the journalists are fair", and noted that in England – and at one club in particular – he was undoubtedly loved.

Having buttered up the world's media – and Fleet Street's finest in particular – after the game on Tuesday, he devoted his Friday press conference to the kind of thing that when Rafa Benitez does it is a rant, but when Mourinho does it is stating fact.

"I have won so, so much that the expectations are so high," he said. "I will say it like this: 'La Liga de los records' [100 points in 2011-12] is mine. You will want to erase that, but you will not achieve it."

There is no doubt it's in the record books. It's a whole point more than Barcelona gained in 2009-10. If you're going to hang your hat on that, fine. Just be sure to also point out that, in Mourinho's first season in charge, Madrid gained four points fewer (92 to 96) than the season before, when the much-derided Manuel Pellegrini was in charge (and had the handicap of being without Cristiano Ronaldo for nearly two months).

And perhaps remember that, even as he was saying this, Real Madrid were a full 11 points behind Barcelona with five games to go. If they don't close the gap, he can set another record: only once since 1995-96 have Real finished further away from the top of the table.

Referring to the Spanish Cup he won in 2010-11, he added: "Twenty years without winning the Copa del Rey – because it is not easy – you cannot erase that either. Three Champions League semi-finals – which do not feed my ego nor leave me satisfied – cannot be easy. It cannot be easy because Madrid have had 18 coaches in 21 years and five semi-finals in 21 years [before his arrival]."

You can't argue with that either. Nor can you really contest the fact that, to reach those three straight semis, Real Madrid knocked out such luminaries as Tottenham Hotspur, Lyon, CSKA Moscow, Galatasaray, Manchester United and APOEL. United apart – and that was with Nani's controversial sending off – we're not exactly talking about the toughest opposition.

But even so Mourinho felt the need to point to something like three semi-finals to somehow prove the criticism he has had is undeserved. The Mourinho we're used to points to trophies won, to the adoration of his players, to the way he took a team of minnows (Porto), underachievers (Inter) and nouveau riches (Chelsea) into the big time.

This one talks about losing semi-finals. Beyond that, there are the intangibles that marked his reign. Launching accusations about global conspiracies involving Uefa, Barcelona and, yes, Unicef. Falling out with virtually every one of his players except those with whom he shares an agent.

Poking an opposing manager in the eye and then running away. Locking a member of the media into a closet and then ranting against him with bodyguards and assistants in tow. Playing mediocre football – it doesn't have pretty, just effective and organised – for the best part of three seasons.

AND all this with not just one of the greatest squads – on paper – ever assembled, but also with total control over club affairs, after the first season when he removed director of football Jorge Valdano.

Mourinho may be technically right in saying he outperformed his predecessors, though even that is open to debate, but guess what? Of the 18 men he derided, six lasted at least one full season and five won a league title or a Spanish cup. When you manage Real for at least a season, that's what tends to happen: you win either the Copa del Rey or La Liga.

It's an ugly end to a tenure that, with some exceptions, was mostly ugly itself despite the vast resources at his disposal. They say you often learn more in defeat than in victory. If that's the case, then if Mourinho can learn from what went wrong, he can come back stronger than ever.

Maybe so. But if that's the case, you have to ask why a wall of silence has fallen over Chelsea. Normally in situations like these, you get some kind of confirmation, even if it's off-the-record, that the deal is done.

That hasn't happened, even though you would think, it's in Chelsea's interest to leak the word if it's true. Benitez knows he's going at the end of the month, and what better way to galvanise the supporters and the squad than leaking the fact the Special One is coming home?

The two or three Mourinho confidantes in the English media have also remained mum. Most likely this is because there is no deal in place. It's an open secret that Roman Abramovich makes these decisions personally these days. Committing to Mourinho would mean handing him (and Mendes) outright control over footballing matters as well as committing to making (more) massive investments in the squad.

It may also be that, even as Mourinho's camp try to force Chelsea's hand, the club know they're in a rather strong negotiating position. There is really only one other plausible destination for him this summer: Paris St-Germain (Carlo Ancelotti looks to be on his way to the Bernabeu to replace Mourinho) and yet PSG are dragging their feet.

Why? As a result of their astronomical Qatari-fuelled spending they are already the team everyone loves to hate, and that's with two universally acknowledged "nice guys" – Ancelotti and Leonardo – at the helm. Mourinho, brilliant and successful as he can be, would bring very little in terms of positive publicity, at least if the guy we've seen in Madrid shows up.

Crazy as it may sound, and despite his deification in some quarters, Mourinho doesn't have that much leverage right now in terms of his next job. A few months ago he derided the notion of taking a year's sabbatical (why pass up a chance to take a swipe at Pep Guardiola?). Now it may not seem so far-fetched. And not by choice.