Jose Mourinho open to leave Roma following Europa League loss

Speculation about who will take over the PSG bench in the upcoming 2023/24 season is only going to gear up. With the end of the current season coming this weekend and Christophe Galtier likely to get sacked following Saturday's game, Jose Mourinho's name popped up in the rumor mill.

Hours before the Europa League final between Mourinho's AS Roma and Sevilla, the whispers started to grow even louder as it was reported that the Portuguese manager would "100% leave Roma with a victory, and 80% following a defeat." In fact, after his side lost to Sevilla in the penalties on Wednesday evening, Mourinho left the door open for a potential exit from Roma.

At the time of this writing, both Luis Enrique and Jose Mourinho are believed to be the two leading candidates to take over the PSG touchline starting next July. Enrique is currently unemployed and he's been linked to Napoli of late, while Mourinho is contract at Roma until 2024 but he's already thinking about leaving as soon as this month.

After securing the Europa Conference League title last season, Mourinho had a golden opportunity to claim another European trophy with Roma and make it back-to-back European triumphs at the Italian capital. It wasn't meant to be.

The Europa League final against Sevilla resulted in a 1-1 draw after regulation, eventually ending in a 1-4 penalty-shootout loss by Mourinho's men at the hands of their Spaniard counterparts.

Speaking to Sky Italia after the match, the 60-year-old manager discussed his future. While he didn't rule out staying at Roma for another year, he expressed the need for a more competitive team and applied pressure on the club's leadership.

"I would like to stay, but only if I can get more help," Mourinho remarked. "I have been open with the owners. If there are any discussions or contacts from other clubs, they will be the first to know. Back in December, I informed them about the Portuguese national team's interest, but nothing materialized. Currently, I have one year remaining on my contract, and that is the current situation. I want to stay, but both my players and I deserve more. I'm growing tired of both being a coach and a communicator, someone who complains about being robbed, and everything else without no one speaking other than me. I want to stay, but I want to ensure that I will have more people around me."

Mourinho doesn't view Roma's absence from the Champions League next season as a setback. He sees it as a positive development, believing that the team is not yet ready to compete at the Champions League level mostly because of the lack of investment in improving the squad by Roma's board.

Mourinho is the top candidate to take over the PSG bench in the upcoming season thanks to his relationship with sporting advisor Luis Campos, who is eager to land the world-renowned coach in Paris as soon as possible.

Mourinho's final decision is not expected to arrive until he returns from his vacation, as he said following Wednesday's game. The Portuguese manager told the media that unless he knows something by Monday, then he will delay a decision until his return from a brief vacation period.