Jose Mourinho Will Not Replace Luciano Spalletti, Says Inter Milan's Director

Inter Milan sporting director Piero Ausilio has reaffirmed the team's trust in coach Luciano Spalletti amid speculation Jose Mourinho could return to the Nerazzurri to replace him.

Mourinho departed Manchester United earlier this month, and his availability coupled with Spalletti's struggles led to plenty of rumours.

Goal's Mark Doyle noted Corriere dello Sport named the Special One the "dream of Interisti" and added the links were likely to stay.

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But as reported by Goal's Nick Howson, Ausilio told Sky Sports Italia the Spaletti isn't going anywhere:

"Mourinho? He is not a shadow. It does not surprise me that we talk about him in a time when media and everyone need to say something.

"We work in a more rational way. Our project has been ongoing for a year-and-a-half with Spalletti and will go on with him for many years.

"[Club owners] Suning [Holdings Group] is ambitious. They want an Inter that returns to winning ways, not one that is content to be second, third or fourth.

"What we can say to the fans is that we are working hard to get Inter back to winning ways as soon as possible."

The pressure on Spalletti increased dramatically after Inter's exit from the UEFA Champions League. The Italians could easily have qualified but couldn't get defeat already eliminated PSV on the final matchday, allowing Tottenham Hotspur to finish ahead of them.

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In Serie A, Inter have risen to third place after a solid run of three wins in four matches, but they will start the new year 14 points behind leaders Juventus and five behind Napoli. A title challenge seems next to impossible, and for ambitious Chinese owners Suning Holdings Group, third place likely isn't good enough.

Eurosport's Siavoush Fallahi believes the results are in line with the team's potential:

Mourinho's final months at Old Trafford were a disaster, but the Portuguese manager still has an excellent reputation in some of the other leagues where he coached.

Arguably his best stint came with Inter between 2008 and 2010, yielding two Serie A titles and a treble following success in the 2009-10 Champions League.

This came shortly after the Calciopoli scandal, a period in which Juventus struggled to recover. The Old Lady have since won seven Italian titles in a row.

Spalletti took charge in 2017 after a successful second stint with AS Roma. He signed a new contract in the summer.