Jose Mourinho's Move To Chelsea On Hold

Jose Mourinho's sensational move back to Chelsea could be on hold - paving the way for him to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United.

The news will have special significance at Old Trafford, with Sir Alex Ferguson having ended his glittering 27-year reign at Old Trafford.

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich refuses to pay the buyout clause in the Real Madrid manager's contract, as well as compensation for Mourinho's backroom staff.

Abramovich paid Mourinho and the backroom team £18million when he sacked them in 2006, and the buyout clause in his Madrid contract is believed to be £20million in the season, with a fee open to negotiation in the summer. Mourinho is still the favoured candidate to succeed Rafa Benitez at Stamford Bridge, but Chelsea want more control over the recruitment of the team surrounding the manager than they had when he arrived from Porto in 2004.

Mourinho has long been touted as a potential successor to Ferguson, but Everton manager David Moyes is still the bookies' favorite to take the helm.

Benitez hinted yesterday that the whole world knows Mourinho was on his way back to Stamford Bridge. He said: ‘You know that next year another manager will be here — that is very clear. Everybody knows who will be here. I will just concentrate on my job.