Jose Mourinho sentenced to one-year prison; But won’t spend time behind bars

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho sentenced to one-year in prison, but he will not serve jail-time.

Manchester United’s manager Jose Mourinho has been sentenced to one-year in prison in the Spanish tax-fraud case. The Portuguese manager has accepted the sentence, but he won’t need to spend time behind the bars.

Mourinho’s sentence is suspended, as the Spanish judicial system has provisions for first-time offenders. First-time offenders with a prison-sentence for two-years or less are not required to serve jail time.

During his time at the Santiago Bernabeu, the current Manchester United manager was accused of defrauding the Spanish tax authorities of €1.9m. Mourinho also appeared in court in Madrid last November for the case, but assured that the situation will be resolved soon.

“It’s simple. I left Spain in 2013 with the information and conviction that my situation with the tax authorities was perfectly legal. A couple of years later I was told that they opened an investigation and they told me that in order to normalise my situation I had to pay X,” said Mourinho at that time.

“I didn’t reply, I didn’t argue. I paid and I signed with the State that I’m in compliance and that the case is closed. For this I was just here for five minutes to tell his excellence the judge exactly what I’ve told you. Nothing else.”

In January, Manchester United player Alexis Sanchez was also handed a 16-month prison sentence for a similar case. He was accused of tax-fraud during his time at FC Barcelona. However, he was exempted from serving prison-time due to being a first-time offender.

Also read: Jose Mourinho to be sacked? United manager rubbishes claim

Former Manchester United and Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo made headlines for tax fraud case throughout the last season. He was fined an amount near to £17m in the case.

The decision of Spanish court ensures that Jose Mourinho can continue on his post as the Manchester United manager.