Jorge Jesus endorses Marco Silva for Benfica: "I believe in his work"

Jorge Jesus was asked about the possibility of Marco Silva taking over from José Mourinho as the head coach of Benfica.

"The most important piece in a team is the manager. The moment you get the manager wrong, everything becomes complicated. The manager gets sacked, even the president might go. Therefore, choosing a manager is crucial. If those at Benfica and Real Madrid believe these are the right people, they must have solid reasons to think so", stated the 71-year-old Portuguese coach.

"He's a manager who has worked in Portugal before, not with a major club, but he didn't manage a top team in England either, like Fulham. Still, I believe in Marco Silva's work", added Jorge Jesus, seemingly forgetting that Marco Silva was his predecessor at Sporting in 2015.

The former Al Nassr coach also commented on Sporting's surprising 1-2 defeat in extra time against Torreense in the Portuguese Cup final, recalling his own experience with Aves in 2018 after the Alcochete training ground incident.

"I don't know Torreense well, but finals... the strongest don't always win. I went through that with Sporting against Aves, so football isn't an exact science—anything can happen in a single game... and it did", said Jorge Jesus, who was also questioned about potentially replacing Roberto Martínez as Portugal's national team coach after the 2026 World Cup.

"No, who can say no to the national team? I've already declined one of the best national teams in the world, I can't say no again... I'm not considering it. The World Cup is approaching, Portugal needs stability, the manager needs peace—I don't want to stir things up", said the Portuguese coach, who previously admitted turning down Brazil's invitation. He was also asked about working again with Cristiano Ronaldo, with whom he won a title in Saudi Arabia.

"The World Cup will likely be his last with the national team. He's an extraordinarily gifted athlete and a technically brilliant player. At 41, he’s performing at an exceptional level, not just because he's in Saudi Arabia—the league there has top players too", Jorge Jesus argued.