By the end, Real Madrid felt they needed Jose Mourinho.
As the club headed into the close season this year, they were reeling on the back of two back-to-back campaigns without silverware.
They had lost six out of seven clásico meetings, the latest of that a defeat at Camp Nou that actually sealed La Liga for Barcelona. It was the first time that either Barcelona or Madrid, the arch-rivals in the Spanish game, had ever beaten the other to directly secure the league.
It was also the latest in a list of painful losses to concede a trophy. Barcelona beat Madrid in January 2025 to win the Spanish Super Cup, beat them in April to win the Copa del Rey, before beating them in January of this year to win the Spanish Super Cup.
It caused Florentino Perez to fall back to the manager he trusts: the Special One, who also had to battle a period of Barcelona dominance under Pep Guardiola in his first spell.
The 63-year-old will begin his second spell with the La Liga opener against Espanyol on Saturday and accepts that results will be the main measure of his work. He has said his first season back should be considered a failure if he ends it without a trophy.
“A successful season can be viewed in many ways. But in the end, the only pragmatic way is through results,” Mourinho said. “A lot of work is done on many levels, growing the structure of a club, preparing the club for the next 10 years. But in the end, results are what count.
“We have four competitions – or, if we want to say it, three plus one minor competition. But finishing a Real Madrid season without trophies is not a successful season.”
🔥 ¡Listos para nuestro debut en LaLiga! pic.twitter.com/9843ZLF2CA
— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid) August 21, 2026
One of the club’s biggest challenges is finding a system that allows Vinicius Jr, Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe to operate together. Madrid have serious attacking talent in the three superstars, but getting them to work together as a team has been difficult.
Mourinho said fitting them into the same team will require tactical changes. The club have prepared for that in part by signing Yan Diomande, who should in theory provide more balance to the side.
“They are incredible players, and incredible players want to play with incredible players,” Mourinho said. “Top players have frustration when they play with teammates who are not top.”
“The best want to play with the best. After the tactical adjustments, it might be a little bit more difficult. It’s harder to find the perfect set-up for all three. But here we are. I want all three of them to feel comfortable on the field together.”
How far the Portuguese succeeds in doing that will go a long way towards shaping the legacy of his second coming.
