Sacked Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho is heading back to his £25million family home in London today after living in a hotel up north for two years.
The 55-year-old spent around £550,000 staying in the five star Lowry Hotel in a £600-a-night suite – but settled up and checked out after being fired today.
Mourinho, who has agreed a £22.5million pay-off with United, shunned a mansion in Cheshire for a 700 sq ft room with views of the River Irwell in Salford.
His family base remains in Belgravia, London, where his wife of Matilde, 54, daughter, also called Matilde, 22, but nicknamed Tita, and son Jose Jnr, 18, known as Zuca, all live.
Jose Jr played football for Fulham until he was released last year and is looking for a new club while Matilde graduated from University of the Arts, London, in July and is pursuing a career in fashion.
The siblings appear unlikely to follow their father abroad if he gets a new job and it is not clear if their mother will stay in Britain to support them as they still relatively young.
Jose Mourinho pictured outside his £25m house in central London where he will now live after being fired by Manchester United
Jose will be spending more time with his wife Matilde, daughter, also called Matilde, 22, and son Jose Mourinho Jnr, 18, who all live in the capital (pictured at the UK film premiere of The Hunger Games in 2014)
Mourinho leaves the Lowry Hotel today where he spent more than 900 days – and £550,000 – before he was sacked by United today
Mourinho is understood to have been staying in one of the Lowry’s luxury Riverside Suites, costing £600 a night
Another job in the Premier League now looks unlikely, with football sources suggesting he could manage Paris Saint-Germain in France, the Portuguese national team or even start a new adventure managing a side in the United States.
Mr Mourinho bought his six-bedroom London mansion for £6.5million but it is now worth more than £25million.
But while in Manchester the master tactician decided to remain in a hotel rather than purchase a mansion in Cheshire where most of his players live.
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho is all smiles as he leaves the Lowry hotel, where he spent 904 nights
His wife and children were said to be keen to stay in London.
The now former Manchester United boss lived in one of the Lowry Hotel’s luxury Riverside Suites.
A Riverside Suite is priced at £600, which means Mourinho has shelled out around £550,000 for 904 nights he stayed there.
He would regularly hug or put his arm around staff as he arrived after work and also held pre-match meetings in the hotel – but checked out today.
The Mourinhos have lived in Portugal, Spain and Italy as the football manager worked for various football clubs but like Britain because their children are settled here.
He owns five houses in his native Portugal including one in Azeitao, near Setubal, his home town, and a luxury apartment overlooking the bay of Cascais.
He is also believed to own a property overlooking Lake Como in Italy, which he bought when he was manager of Inter Milan.
And while manager of Real Madrid he owned a mansion in the exclusive La Finca district of the Spanish capital, where Gareth Bale also lives.
His daughter Matilde, who has recently completed a fine art degree, is believed to want to pursue a career in fashion and design in London.
Four years ago she became headline news when she wore an eye-popping designer dress when she accompanied her father to the GQ Awards, and he didn’t look too happy about it.
And a year before that Matilde joined Mr Mourinho and his wife at the Victoria’s Secret fashion show in London’s Earl’s Court.
Mr Mourinho with his daughter Matilde, who is said to be pursuing a career in fashion (pictured together in 2015)
Her father told the Big Issue in 2015: ‘My wife and my son and my daughter have the biggest influence on me, that’s for sure. And why? Because they are the bosses and control everything in the house’
He added: ‘What is a good night for me? Good television, a good film or book. A good night for me is to have a nice dinner with my wife and son and daughter’.
‘Obviously, now they are getting older and they are starting to have their lives and they have their friends also, so at this moment with school, football, university – we cannot be like before with lunch and dinner together every day. So now is different, so a good night for me is to enjoy them and have a good meal and after that spend time with my family’.
The family of four are very close – he has their names tattooed on his wrist – but the star coach will not be much help around the house now he is out of work.
He said: ‘I’m a disaster round the house, practically. I can do nothing The only thing I can do is, I’m very organised about my things, so I don’t disturb people at the house. My office is always well organised and my clothes are organised. So I don’t really help but I don’t disturb’.
Mourinho is expected to take an extended holiday after his sacking before settling back into London life.
In 2016 a burglar tried to break into his Belgravia home while he watched the European Championships final on TV has been jailed.
Jose, pictured with his wife and daughter, has admitted he is terrible around the house, where he will be spending much of his time
The football manager, pictured after another Premier League win with Chelsea, is very close to his children, pictured, who love London life
Cabor Roman was grabbed outside the former Chelsea boss’ six-bedroom Belgravia home after trying to get smash his way into the basement.
A Portuguese maid spotted him while doing some ironing and a security guard then stepped in.
Mourinho and his wife watched from the window as he was taken away by eight police officers.
The family resettled in London after spells in Italy and Spain.
But in 2008 Mourinho admitted he might never return after he claimed the police tried to ‘arrest’ his dog.
Mourinho claimed the clashes he had with Chelsea’s billionaire owner Roman Abramovich and then Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger were nothing compared to his run-in with police officers over Yorkshire terrier Leya.
Police raided Mourinho’s Belgravia home over claims the animal had been taken in and out of the country breaking quarantine rules. The pet eventually had to return to Portugal.