Jose Mourinho to Chelsea – but has set the club three conditions

Jose Mourinho appears willing to return to Chelsea as manager this summer – but has set the club three conditions, according to reports.

The Daily Mirror claims the 50-year-old will demand a salary of £12million to move to the Stamford Bridge side from Real Madrid.

In addition, he is said to want Roman Abramovich to hand veteran midfielder Frank Lampard a new contract to stay at the club.

However, the final condition of Mourinho is that Rafael Benitez’s team qualify for the Champions League.

Challenge

Following today’s results, that is looking like a major challenge for Chelsea as they now sit in fifth place.

Their success in the FA Cup and Europa League has led to a fixture pile-up, and Benitez is set to face an extremely difficult task to juggle all three competitions as the season draws to a close.

One thing in Chelsea’s favour is that they have a game in hand on the two sides directly above them –Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal – and a win against Sunderland tomorrow will see them leapfrog both sides into third.

The Blues’ finishing spot this season could have a huge knock-on effect, with Mourinho’s return hanging in the balance.

Should he go back to Stamford Bridge, the newspaper claims he will try to persuade Lampard to turn his back on a move to MLS side LA Galaxy.

Funds

The England international is out of contract at the end of the season, but the return of Mourinho could lead to him extending his career in the Premier League.

If the Portuguese manager takes over at Chelsea, Abramovich will give him significant funds to strengthen the squad as he believes there are major weaknesses in it, according to the newspaper.

However, the paper also claims the Blues fear missing out on Mourinho if they do not qualify for the Champions League, with French side Paris Saint-Germain reportedly ready to step in.

Mourinho is a legend at Stamford Bridge having won two Premier League titles, an FA Cup and two League Cups.

He has since enhanced his reputation with trophy-laden spells at Inter Milan and Real Madrid, so a return to Chelsea would surely be well-received by fans.