Mourinho: We Deserved the Win, We Must Fight This Issue

Jose Mourinho, the head coach of Real Madrid, stated that his team deserved to win against Espanyol, despite admitting that the home side did not deserve to lose. He highlighted the difficulty of the match and the importance of the three points that the royal team secured at the start of their La Liga campaign.

Mourinho said during the post-match press conference: "I think we deserved to win, but Espanyol did not deserve to lose. We had great control and pressure in the second half, and we took many risks, so I see that we deserved the win. When you face a team like Espanyol, who defends in this way and launches counter-attacks like this, with players giving their all and good organization, it will be difficult for them to go home empty-handed. But we deserved the win."

Mourinho spoke about the tactical system and the physical condition of Real Madrid players, stating: "You cannot ignore the physical condition of the team when talking about the system. Espanyol had no players in the World Cup, and they have been working together for a long time, which shows in their level of intensity."

He continued: "I didn't expect Jude Bellingham to be able to play for this long. When it comes to pressing in the way I like, we are missing the minutes and kilometers. That's why I appreciate this win so much; it's a victory of spirit, and also thanks to the bench. A frustrating bench doesn't help you at all, but a bench that feels like part of the team helps you win. It was a tough match, and these are three very important points."

Mourinho addressed the situation of Vinicius Jr. and what the player is facing during matches, stating: "I have a problem because you may recall my comments months ago when I was an opponent of Vinicius, but now Vinicius is my player. He is not a saint, but what he is experiencing is exaggerated; from the first minute, you feel like there is a system in place to deal with him. Now a player hits him, then another player comes in, one of them gets a yellow card, and another enters without a card. This is extremely frustrating for him, and he needs a great deal of mental control. I told him that if he scores, he should pay attention to how he celebrates. We live in an era that fights bullying, but with Vinicius, we are still living in an era of bullying."

Jose Mourinho praised Jude Bellingham, asserting that Real Madrid possesses several players ranked among the best in the world. "When we talk about the best players in the world, Real Madrid has many of them in this group. Bellingham, Vinicius, Mbappe, all of them are among the best players. I had doubts about whether to start Jude from the beginning or bring him on later. I don’t know if I made the right decision, but he is very strong both physically and mentally. I expect him to link the midfield with the attackers. He has the ability to score, and he needs to play close to the goal. He can play in a deeper position, but then we lose his proximity to the goal."

He added: "I like Jude when he's in top physical shape because he can create these opportunities. And Federico Valverde can also reach this area, but when he plays with Bernardo, he needs to be more committed to his position, and we lose a bit of that quality. We are getting to know each other, but we are doing it without dropping points, and that is the important thing."

Mourinho spoke about Carlos Espe, the scorer of the dramatic winner against Espanyol, praising the player's character and work ethic, saying: "He is a very cheerful young man. We live together in Valdebebas, having breakfast, lunch, and dinner together, me, my staff, him, and Cucurella. Tomorrow will be Espe's presentation ceremony; imagine he is living a dream. But he doesn't work as if he is in another world; he works a lot. He has everything for a forward; he is an excellent player. When we saw that Gonzalo might leave for Fulham, we analyzed the situation well, and we are very happy to have him. We need a player with these qualities in matches of this kind."

Regarding the referee's performance during the match, Mourinho said: "He had a great game, but I say that from the bench. I might see him later in his office and my perspective could change. There were no decisive moments through VAR or anything that could have determined the outcome of the match."

Mourinho spoke about the influx of new players at Real Madrid and the challenges of managing the squad, stating: "The difficult thing is that you start the match with 11 players and have 12 players on the bench. I can't solve that, and I can't perform miracles, and I've told the players, we have to fight the frustration of not participating. They need to understand that I feel sad when I leave some players out of the lineup. If they don't work, it will be easier for me."

Mourinho concluded his remarks by stating: "The five who stepped onto the pitch did what they had to do to help, and they had a good feeling about the team. It must be like that. Even in friendly matches, Real Madrid cannot allow itself not to fight for victory. We will lose some matches, and I hope it won't be too many, but Real Madrid competes in four competitions, and must always play seriously. We cannot play with ten players."