Mourinho, act II. This summer, the Portuguese technician is making his comeback to the forefront. Real Madrid have decided to bet on him again to lead the club’s flagship team. A choice criticized by some who believe that his glory days are behind him. But the Special One intends to get everyone to agree and above all help Casa Blanca get back to the top after another blank year. However, Florentino PĂ©rez believed he made the right choice by betting on Xabi Alonso a year ago. The Spaniard, author of excellent work at Bayer Leverkusen, arrived with the label of a very promising coach.
But the mayonnaise didn’t set. Not with everyone. Vinicius Jr, Fede Valverde and Rodrygo experienced difficulties with the former midfielder, who was the target of “hostile and inappropriate behavior” and who lived through hell according to Marca. He was replaced in January by Alvaro Arbeloa, who also experienced difficulties with certain elements including Dani Ceballos, Raul Asencio, Dani Carvajal and Kylian MbappĂ©, to name a few. To make matters worse, the merengue locker room was transformed into a veritable powder keg. Between the struggle for influence between certain executives, jealousies, resentment or competition, tension has been rising all season.
Real Madrid can’t stand star behavior anymore
Then, a milestone was reached with acts of violence. According to the Spanish press, Antonio Rüdiger slapped Alvaro Carreras, who had admitted that there had been an incident. It was nothing compared to the verbal and apparently physical altercations between Aurélien Tchouameni and Fede Valverde. The residents of the Santiago-Bernabéu stadium tried to calm everyone down at the end of the season. But behind the scenes, the Iberian club was and still is very upbeat. Marca indicates that the managers did not at all appreciate the attitude of many players and the lack of respect suffered by Xabi Alonso, then Alvaro Arbeloa. They notably called on Mourinho to restore order on the pitch but especially in the locker room, where it was chaos.
Marca also relays a statement from the club after the signing of the coach. “Let’s see who raises their arms now”. What is a “obvious allusion to the constant discontent that reigned”. Real Madrid is therefore counting on the Portuguese coach to reorganize the players, in particular the stars who did not have a very good attitude or even the behavior of a diva, always complaining even though they were not beyond reproach. We can cite quite a few people, including Vini Jr and Valverde who were detestable with Xabi Alonso, or Mbappé, who alienated certain teammates and Arbeloa during his trip to Italy when he was injured. Mourinho, who is already discussing the upcoming season with his players but also their personal cases, wants to restore order but also ensure that everyone reconnects after a very tense year. A mission tailor-made for him.
