Mourinho was 'hours' from saying yes to England

PARIS - Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho has revealed he seriously considered taking the England job after leaving Chelsea in September 2007, coming within "hours" of doing so before electing to stay in club football.

"When I left Chelsea, the first month was fantastic. I went to Africa, to Japan, I did tons of things I had not been able to do," he said of leading the English side to its first league title in half a century and then repeating the dose before falling out with billionaire owner Roman Abramovich.

"The second month was good too, but from the third onwards it was horrible, just awful," Mourinho said in an interview with French sports daily L'Equipe.