Jose Mourinho has reached a settlement with Spanish tax authorities on Friday morning, agreeing to pay a €3.3million (£2.94m) tax debt for the time he was Real Madrid coach.
The Manchester United manager arrived at court room No 4 in Pozuelo de Alarcón just outside of Madrid at 9.33am local time for his 10am appearance.
He stood accused of evading tax for the years 2010 to 2013 but told reporters outside the magistrates court after his private hearing: ‘I did not argue. I have paid and signed with the state to say I am definitely tax compliant.’
Mourinho was accused of defrauding the Spanish tax authorities of £2.9million during his time in charge of Real Madrid by not declaring profits from image rights.
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The Portuguese manager was mobbed by photographers and reporters on his way into and out of the hearing, which comes just two days before United face title rivals Chelsea.
The case has threatened to disrupt United’s preparations for their crucial trip to face his former side at Stamford Bridge on Sunday afternoon.
The club brought Mourinho’s weekly press conference forward 24 hours from its usual slot to Thursday, while his No 2 Rui Faria and his coaching staff will oversee training when he is out of the country.
He settled a previous claim against him in 2014, paying a penalty of £1m, but prosecutors claimed in June that some of the information in that settlement was incorrect.
Mourinho responded by issuing a statement insisting that his taxes had been paid in full. It read: ‘Jose Mourinho has not received any notification with regards to the news published today.
‘To this date, neither the Spanish tax authorities, not the public prosecutor have contacted Jose Mourinho or his advisers who were hired for the inspection process.
‘Jose Mourinho, who lived in Spain from June 2010 until May 2013, paid more than €26m (£22.7m) in taxes, with an average tax rate over 41 per cent, and accepted the regularisation proposals made by the Spanish tax authorities in 2015 regarding the years 2011 and 2012 and entering into a settlement agreement regarding 2013.’
