Celtic ‘hold tentative talks’ with Jose Mourinho’s former assistant Rui Faria about manager vacancy
CELTIC have widened their managerial search by targeting Jose Mourinho’s former assistant Rui Faria, according to reports.
Ange Postecoglou remains the hot favourite to , with a deal still expected to be concluded this week.
And according to the , they have held ‘tentative talks’ with Faria’s representatives in a bid to establish his interest.
The 45 year-old is available after leaving Qatari club Al-Duhail last year, his first post as a manager in his own right.
Prior to that he was Mourinho’s right-hand man for 17 years including at Porto, Inter, , Real Madrid and – lifting the UEFA Cup AGAINST Celtic in 2003.
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Faria has also been linked with the manager’s vacancy at but is said to be keen on the Celtic post if Postecoglou doesn’t get it.
Mourinho has always spoken highly of his former assistant and believes he would thrive as a manager at a big club.
Speaking during their second spell together at Chelsea, Mou said: “I don’t want to put them, all of them in the same dimension.
"The one that has more potential than any other one. The one that if he wants to become a manager tomorrow he is more than ready to do it at the highest level.
"If one day I have to choose my successor, if you want to use that, the one that I really feel thinks like me, is adapted to my way of leading, adapted to my way of coaching.
"He’s the one with more similarities with me even in some traces of personality… my assistant, Rui Faria.”