Álvaro Arbeloa will end his brief time as coach of Real Madrid this Saturday. The Spanish coach confirmed in a press conference that he will not continue on the Merengue bench next season, amid reports that link the Portuguese José Mourinho as the next coach of the white club.

Subscribe to DAZN here and don't miss the UEFA Champions League.

The farewell will come in the match against Athletic Club, a match that will mark the closing of a cycle of just four months for the former Madrid defender. During his appearance, Arbeloa made it clear that he accepts his departure naturally and that he considers his responsibility fulfilled at the head of the team in a complex context.

"I hope it's a see you later because I have always considered this my home. I have been part of Real Madrid for 20 years in many capacities. It will be my last game this season as coach of Real Madrid, I don't know if it will be the last of my life. We will never know. I will try to enjoy it," he expressed.

The former player took over after the departure of Xabi Alonso and acknowledged that the timing of his arrival conditioned part of his work. As he explained, he received a battered locker room and a complicated scenario to manage, a situation that he tried to face by prioritizing the sporting needs of the institution.

"The opportunity came when it came, you don't choose it. For me the important thing is how you face what happens to you and I have tried to do it in the best way, thinking about Real Madrid more than about myself," he said.

He also added: "I know how the team and the locker room were when I arrived, what I have had to face. It would have been different if the season had started, but it has been what I have had."

Mourinho appears on the horizon of the white club

The possibility of a return of José Mourinho to the Real Madrid bench has gained strength in recent weeks and Arbeloa himself was consulted about a possible continuity within the Portuguese's coaching staff. The Spanish coach completely ruled out that option.

"I'm not here to talk about possibilities. The coach has a fantastic coaching staff, as good as he is. If he coaches Real Madrid he will do it with his coaching staff," he said.

Later he insisted: "I'm not here to talk about possibilities. Mou has a fantastic coaching staff, he is very well surrounded. If he arrives, he will do it with his team, as it should be. There is no possibility that I can be with him."

Despite the internal tensions experienced in recent months, Arbeloa dedicated words of recognition to his players and admitted that the differences within the locker room were a normal part of the process.

"I am very grateful to all my players for what we have been through these four months. With 25 people you cannot have the same relationship. These four months we have had differences, something that is common and normal, as happens with any coach," he commented.

The coach also avoided commenting on recommendations for his successor and preferred to focus his message on the experience accumulated during this stage. "I have spent four months without thinking about myself. And starting Monday I will think about what is best for me. I see myself training in the quarry for a year and now where I am, taking the leap, and I have improved a lot. I see myself prepared for new challenges," he concluded, as quoted by EFE.