Real Madrid have announced the return of Jose Mourinho as the manager of the club for a second stint. The last time the club did something similar, it resulted in them winning a couple of Champions League titles.

So, Real Madrid fans will be hoping for something similar with Mourinho as well. The Portuguese manager does have a big task on his hands.

Despite having an in-form Kylian Mbappe up top, this Real Madrid team has finished without a major trophy in two straight seasons.

There is speculation about attitude issues behind the scenes as well. So, Mourinho will need to navigate his way through the dressing room problems and find a solution to Real Madrid's problems.

Signing quality players will be one of the ways to do that. Real Madrid are believed to be close to the signing of Bernardo Silva, almost out of nowhere.

On the other hand, it does look like they are set to miss out on another of their rumoured targets to Manchester United.

According to Times Sport, Manchester United are set to win the transfer race for £80m-rated Mateus Fernandes. The West Ham United midfielder, who is also wanted by Mourinho, is increasingly likely to make the move to Old Trafford.

It is easy to see why Fernandes might prefer a move to Manchester United. His chances of getting first-team minutes would be much higher there than at Real Madrid at this point in time.

It goes to show the potential of Fernandes that clubs like Real Madrid and Manchester United are both interested in him.

One would think that he plays for one of the top clubs in the world or is coming off a very successful season.

In reality, West Ham United have been relegated to the Championship after finishing 18th in the Premier League.

The year before that, Fernandes was on the books at Southampton, who also ended up getting relegated from the Premier League.

READ MORE: Fabrizio Romano Names Real Madrid's Original €150m Target Before Julian Alvarez

It looks like his next stint is expected to be a lot more successful at a team level, wherever that turns out to be.

To be very honest, it has been quite some time since Real Madrid have gone out and spent that kind of money on signing a midfielder.

The risk would be even higher if they did so and signed a midfielder coming off back-to-back relegation campaigns. If it did not work out, serious questions would be asked of the recruitment team.

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