After going two seasons with no main trophy, Real Madrid restored Jose Mourinho as supervisor and have backed him with their greatest summer time spend since 2019.
Madrid additionally turned to the Portuguese coach the final time they completed consecutive campaigns with no silverware.
When he arrived for his first spell at the membership in 2010, he had simply led Inter to a European treble. His appointment this time round was more surprising, and the 63-year-old, who was at Benfica final time period, has an enormous job forward.
The Athletic appears ahead to the new season — which for Madrid begins with a visit to Espanyol in La Liga on Saturday.
What are the expectations inside the membership?
At Real Madrid, calls for are all the time excessive.
Both Mourinho and the membership consider they’ve a group able to competing for each trophy: La Liga, the Copa del Rey, the Supercopa de Espana and the Champions League. Their view is that each place is roofed by at least two gamers.
Who have they signed?
Real Madrid have dedicated round €250million (£214m; $292m) on reinforcements: Denzel Dumfries from Inter (€25m); Ibrahima Konate (free switch); Marc Cucurella from Chelsea (€55m plus €5m in add-ons); Bernardo Silva (free switch); Yan Diomande from RB Leipzig (€125m plus €15m in add-ons, which would make him Madrid’s record signing) and Carlos Espi from Levante (€25m).
Yan Diomande arrived after a breakthrough debut season at RB Leipzig (Christof Koepsel/Getty Images)
Madrid and Mourinho had agreed on the want to enhance the squad with a second-choice right-back to supply competitors for Trent Alexander-Arnold, at least one dominant centre-back, a beginning left-back and a inventive midfielder.
Although it was not a precedence, Mourinho additionally fancied having a ‘pure No 9’. To accommodate this, Gonzalo Garcia left to affix Alvaro Arbeloa’s Fulham, and Espi was introduced in.
Diomande was signed to spice up the group’s attacking menace down the proper, because it had been closely focused on the reverse flank the place Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham all shine. One of the greatest developments was Vinicius Jr renewing his deal, amid interest from Arsenal, until 2032.
What is their switch precedence earlier than the window closes?
Despite being proud of what he has, Mourinho remains to be eager for the membership to signal one other centre-back and one other midfielder.
Madrid’s message, as additionally acknowledged in inside conferences, is that the 25 senior squad locations obtainable below La Liga’s rules are stuffed. Academy graduate Thiago Pitarch, who turned 19 this month, has been promoted from the reserves group and is listed on the membership’s web site as a part of the first-team midfield.
For a brand new participant to affix, ideally another person would want to go away. Madrid have potential targets on their radar ought to this example come up.
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What else is new?
Following an in-depth evaluation, with Mourinho closely concerned throughout many departments to establish previous successes and errors, modifications have been made since his appointment was made official on June 11.
Mourinho has introduced in seven specialists, some from his earlier job at Benfica.
Joao Tralhao will once more be his assistant coach, and Pedro Machado has additionally adopted from Lisbon. Former Germany midfielder Sami Khedira, who performed below Mourinho at Madrid throughout the supervisor’s first spell from 2010 to 2013, is a brand new addition. It is the 39-year-old’s first teaching job.
Sami Khedira performed three seasons below Jose Mourinho at Madrid earlier than leaving in 2015 (Christof Koepsel/Getty Images)
Nuno Santos is the new goalkeeping coach, Antonio Dias the new health coach — though he’ll work alongside Antonio Pintus. Sandro Carrico is in sports activities sciences and Roberto Merella is head analyst.
The medical division has additionally seen modifications in response to the accidents suffered in current seasons. Felipe Segura, who had changed Niko Mihic as head of medical providers in November 2023 earlier than being sidelined in December 2025 by Mihic himself, has now left. Manuel Arroyo, who joined in 2025, has resigned, whereas Alexandre Creuze, previously at Monaco, has been employed.
Physiotherapist Jose Carlos Parrales and health coach Sebastien Devillaz have left, too. Alongside Guillermo Zurdo, Devillaz was the individual closest to Mbappe on a day-to-day foundation. This summer time, after leaving Madrid, he labored with the Frenchman individually throughout his holidays.
Who’s been the greatest participant in pre-season?
Arda Guler’s performances have sparked an intriguing debate. With Mbappe, Bellingham, Vinicius Jr and Diomande all anticipated starters, the place can he slot in?
The 21-year-old Turkey midfielder has Mourinho’s backing, and he’s additionally regarded by Madrid’s board as key to giving construction and path to the group’s play together with his contact, imaginative and prescient and nice reference to Mbappe.
What are they anxious about?
One of Mourinho’s major aims is to foster a greater every day tradition, with better competitiveness and concord — whereas additionally producing higher outcomes.
Madrid have been left with no actual likelihood of profitable La Liga months earlier than the finish of final season. Club sources — talking anonymously as they didn’t have permission to remark — consider this had an affect on the tensions that grew behind the scenes. Those tensions got here to the fore in the training ground fight between Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde, days before El Clasico in May.
When asked about those tensions in his pre-match press conference on Friday, Mourinho stated: “If you see it now, you can’t even imagine what happened last season. What I’ve seen isn’t even peace — it’s friendship, cooperation. It’s as if nothing had happened.”
How’s the supervisor feeling?
Sources near Mourinho say he’s very enthusiastic about this second chapter.
He feels he has an excellent employees to work alongside the individuals who have been already at Madrid and a squad to develop this new undertaking.
Might Arda Guler lastly get his huge Madrid breakthrough this season? (Christian Bruna/Getty Images)
Mourinho has been totally dedicated, even sleeping at the training floor on just a few events to verify he has time for all the duties he has needed to attain. He is totally in control with all the things throughout all departments, as he favored to be throughout his earlier spell. He additionally slept at Benfica’s training floor typically final season.
What’s the share likelihood of Mourinho seeing out the season?
After making Mourinho their third managerial appointment in simply over a yr again in June, everybody can be hoping he can convey extra stability and success.
As Xabi Alonso and Arbeloa came upon, good outcomes and competing for silverware matter most at Real Madrid, a membership who’ve never shied away from ruthless decisions.
I wouldn’t be shocked if…
Guler turns into an everyday by Christmas at the expense of certainly one of the group’s ‘undisputed’ starters.
He is seen internally as crucial to the group and to the membership, so there might be some extent the place Mourinho sees the have to put extra religion in him, even when meaning a extra senior participant shedding a few of the highlight.
What is their strongest XI?
On Friday, when requested about his beginning XI in opposition to Espanyol, Mourinho joked with reporters: “Let’s see who has the best contact. The players already know who’s playing. I’m not someone who hides things. Maybe in a couple of hours your information will arrive, but I’m not going to tell you. But to answer your question about whether I have an ideal XI: I don’t have one, or I don’t want to have one.”
Regardless, here’s what we predict is Madrid’s strongest group for the begin of the season:
