Real Madrid turn to Mourinho in bid to bring stability and end trophy drought

June 11 : Real Madrid appointed Jose Mourinho as their new manager on a three-year contract on Thursday, turning back to the Portuguese tactician who once delivered them a record-breaking LaLiga triumph but has not won a league title since leaving the Spanish capital.

"Jose Mourinho will join Real Madrid on July 13, the day preseason begins," Real said in a statement.

The move comes after Real endured a humiliating end to their domestic campaign, with Barcelona clinching the league title with a 2-0 victory in 'El Clasico' last month.

It marked the first time in 94 years that the Spanish league had been decided by a meeting between the fierce rivals.

The record 15-times Champions League winners have also failed to clear the quarter-final stage in the last two seasons, prompting club president Florentino Perez to act decisively after two seasons without a major trophy.

Real had sacked Xabi Alonso following a Spanish Super Cup loss to Barcelona in January before his replacement Alvaro Arbeloa also failed to get the best out of a fractured dressing room that descended into chaos.

The breaking point came when captain Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni engaged in a dressing room fight that resulted in Valverde being taken to hospital with a cut, with both players being fined 500,000 euros ($581,750) each.

Mourinho, 63, previously managed Real's 'Galactico' signings from 2010-2014 after arriving fresh from a treble-winning campaign with Inter Milan.

During his tenure at Real, the fiery Portuguese manager won the Copa del Rey in 2010-11 and delivered the LaLiga title the following season with a record-breaking 100-point tally while challenging Pep Guardiola's all-conquering Barcelona side.

However, the self-anointed "Special One"