BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Real Madrid’s Álvaro Arbeloa gave his blessing to former boss José Mourinho on Saturday amid intense speculation that the Portuguese coach is set to replace him and start a second stint at the European powerhouse.
Speaking like a coach who knows his days are numbered, Arbeloa told reporters in Madrid on Saturday that “if he (Mourinho) is the one who is here next season, I will be happy to see him back home.”
Arbeloa played for Madrid when Mourinho was in charge from 2010-2013, a tumultuous time in which Madrid won Spanish league and Copa del Rey titles but was overshadowed by Pep Guardiola’s great Barcelona side. Mourinho's abrasive attitude to opponents like Guardiola as well as some of his own players turned off many in Spain. He also had his faithful backers, like Arbeloa and some hardcore fans.
The Madrid sports papers are rife with rumors that Mourinho is the leading candidate to replace Arbeloa, who was always seen as an interim coach after he was promoted from the club’s reserve team midseason to fill in for the fired Xabi Alonso.
Second-place Madrid has two more Spanish league games to play this campaign, which it will finish without a major title. It visits Sevilla on Sunday and concludes the season at home against Athletic Bilbao on May 23.
The 15-time European Cup winners have been embarrassed in recent weeks by series of unseemly events. There was a fight between players, and a loss at Barcelona that allowed its fierce rival to clinch the league title. Kylian Mbappé was also jeered by fans, while the star striker called out Arbeloa publicly for not playing him more.
Club president Florentino Pérez added to the sense of a club in crisis by giving a press conference to announce he would call early elections, which he is expected to win, while blasting the media for what he considered a campaign to force him to quit.
Pérez is expected to make a coaching change soon, and it is understandable that he believes Mourinho’s strong personality is what the squad needs.
Mourinho, who led Porto and Inter Milan to Champions League titles in 2004 and 2010, is finishing his season with Benfica this weekend. The 63-year-old coach said on Friday that he had received an offer from the Lisbon-based club to continue, but that he will decide his future in the coming days.
When asked what he thought about Mourinho’s possible return, Arbeloa reiterated similar praise he has lavished on Mourinho on other occasions.
“For me as a player, and above all as a Madrid supporter, I feel and think that he is the number one,” Arbeloa said.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
FILE - Real Madrid's Alvaro Arbeloa, left, fights for the ball with Manchester United's Danny Welbeck, with Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho on the background, during the Champions League round of 16 first leg soccer match between Real Madrid and Manchester United at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid, Wednesday Feb. 13, 2013. (AP Photo/Daniel Ochoa de Olza, File)
FILE - Real Madrid's head coach Alvaro Arbeloa looks out from the bench prior to the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Real Oviedo in Madrid, Spain, Thursday, May 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez, File)
FILE -Benfica's head coach José Mourinho arrives for a Champions League opening phase soccer match between SL Benfica and Real Madrid in Lisbon, Portugal, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Pedro Rocha, File)
ST. LOUIS (AP) — St. Louis Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol believes in the “no shirt, no problem,” mantra.
His club was boosted to a win Friday night by a group of college ball players in the right-field seats who took off and waved their shirts as they sang, chanted and drew others into the fray.
Marmol loved it, so much so that he purchased tickets for shirtless revelers this weekend.
“Last night’s atmosphere was electric. Let’s run it back this weekend," Marmol said in a social media post. “I’ll buy tickets for fans who want to sit in the right field Loge and bring the energy.”
It all began when the Stephen F. Austin club baseball team called the Lumberjacks were in nearby Alton, Illinois, for the National Club Baseball Division II World Series. The Cardinals offered tickets to the team, and 17 players attended.
By the time Yohel Pozo drove in the game-winning run with a walk-off single in the 11th inning, the Lumberjacks had other fans — and even the mascot Fredbird — joining in on the ruckus.
“Whoever started that in right field, I’ll do whatever I need to do to make sure they come every game,” Marmol said Friday night. “Because that was awesome. Not only them, but everybody that showed up today. That was a fun environment.”
The “tarps off” trend — celebrating by taking your shirt off and waving it — is not new to sports, but it was to Busch Stadium.
Who knows, Friday night's fans may have accidentally created a new tradition.
The fans sang soccer chants and shouted players’ names. The stadium organist, Dwayne Hilton, played accompanying music and got everyone involved in the spirit.
The party had grown to multiple sections by the 11th inning.
“It creates an environment where, it’s not only filling this place up, it’s making it a tough place for other teams to come in and play,” Marmol said Friday. “That was pretty damn cool. I’ll sign up for that, any day.”
The Cardinals said Marmol purchased right-field tickets for both games this weekend, and all of them were snapped up by Saturday afternoon.
Game 2 of the three-game series against the Kansas City Royals began Saturday after about a 45-minute rain delay, and the Lumberjacks were back. They arrived to the ballpark in the fourth inning, following a win of their own, and immediately took their shirts off.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
St. Louis Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol looks up into the stands at fans as they cheer and wave their shirts above their heads during the fourth inning of a baseball game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Kansas City Royals Saturday, May 16, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Fans cheer and wave their shirts above their heads during the fourth inning of a baseball game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Kansas City Royals Saturday, May 16, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Fans cheer and wave their shirts above their heads during the fourth inning of a baseball game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Kansas City Royals Saturday, May 16, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
St. Louis Cardinals' Yohel Pozo (63) is congratulated by teammate Masyn Winn (0) after hitting a walk-off single to defeat the Kansas City Royals during the 11th inning of a baseball game Friday, May 15, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
St. Louis Cardinals' Masyn Winn flies out during the first inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals Saturday, May 16, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
St. Louis Cardinals manger Oliver Marmol walks to the dugout after making a pitching change during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Athletics, Thursday, May 14, 2026, in West Sacramento, Calif. (AP Photo/Scott Marshall)
