Former Liverpool and Real Madrid head coach Rafael Benítez has told ESPN he is keen for his next job to be in the Premier League or in Serie A, but added he is “open to anything.”
Benítez’s last coaching role ended in March 2024 when he was sacked by Celta Vigo following a poor run of form that left the LaLiga club two points above the relegation zone. Celta Vigo earned nine wins during his 33 games in charge, with three of them coming against lower-division sides in the Copa del Rey.
The 65-year-old has previously experienced great success as a manager. His major honours include two LaLiga titles, a Coppa Italia and an iconic Champions League triumph with Liverpool in 2005.
“I am working as a technical observer for UEFA. That means that you go around watching games … And then at the same time you go to different federations and then you talk about your experience and then you try to pass this experience to new coaches or people around football,” Benitez told ESPN.
“So I had some offers and my idea obviously is to coach. So I want to continue coaching because I have the energy and the experience now and then, but the, the difficult thing is to find the team [with] which you can compete.”
Asked which countries he can see himself coaching in, Benítez said: “Ideally for me, I like the Premier League. I like the Premier League because of the intensity of the game, the pace of the game. And I know the players and I know the environment, but Italy is another country that I like. Spain, also. I like Spain, but there are not too many teams [you can coach] when you have been [at] Valencia or you have been in Madrid
“So you go from top sides and then you go to a team that you need time for a project and people are very nervous now. So mainly the Premier League, Serie A. But I’m open to anything. Why? Because I’m not a stupid. And then when you have been one year just doing this job as a technical observer, people think: ‘oh, maybe he doesn’t want to coach.’ Yeah, I want to coach. So any country that a team can come with a project and give you the chance to compete will be fine if the conditions are right.”
Benítez has managed four Premier League teams during his managerial career — Liverpool, Chelsea, Newcastle United and Everton. His most recent job in Italy — at Napoli — came to an end in 2015.
