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Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho rejects Portugal link
Posted Saturday, October 15, 2011 by YAHOO Sport

Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho rejects Portugal link

Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho has poured cold water on rumors linking him with the Portugal national team.

"That is one big lie," he told reporters at a press conference. "It does not make sense. It is clear to me, to the federation and to Madrid that it is impossible. No-one has thought about it. There has not been any contact and this story should be over already."

A report in Mundo Deportivo earlier in the week claimed the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) was considering naming Mourinho as a temporary coach for the Euro 2012 playoff tie against Bosnia & Herzegovina.

Portugal's interest in Mourinho is not new, as the 48-year-old was under consideration in 2010 for two Euro 2012 qualifiers, but Real Madrid rejected the possibility.

Mourinho went on to say that there were no fitness worries in the squad ahead of the Liga clash against Betis on Saturday.

"We had some minor problems which forced us to make some changes in previous matches, but right now the 21 players in the squad are fine and none are in doubt," the Portuguese coach added. "It is true some of them have just recovered from injuries and others, like Karim Benzema, have only had one day's training.

"Others have returned from their respective national teams but, except for Raul Albiol, those international matches were not hard on Madrid, as far as injuries are concerned."

Madrid is third in La Liga, trailing Barcelona and Levante by one point.

Standings
    Rank Team W/D/L Pts

    Cities & Stadiums

    The Top 3 Teams of Previous Tournaments

    Year Winners Runner-up Third place
    2008SpainGermanyRussia / Turkey
    2004GreecePortugalNetherlands / Czech Republic
    2000FranceItalyNetherlands / Portugal
    1996GermanyCzech RepublicFrance / England
    1992DenmarkGermanyNetherlands / Sweden
    1988NetherlandsSoviet UnionItaly / West Germany
    1984FranceSpainDenmark / Portugal
    1980West GermanyBelgiumCzechoslovakia
    1976CzechoslovakiaWest GermanyNetherlands
    1972West GermanySoviet UnionBelgium
    1968ItalyYugoslaviaEngland
    1964SpainSoviet UnionHungary
    1960Soviet UnionYugoslaviaCzechoslovakia