Mourinho: What has been said about Mbappé is silly, and this is what is required from Real Madrid fans

José Mourinho, the Portuguese manager of Real Madrid, has defended Kylian Mbappé amid the controversy surrounding the French forward during the international break, describing the uproar as exaggerated and reaffirming his confidence in Mbappé's commitment to the club. He also sent a message to the team's fans, urging them to assess the situation fairly and not be swayed by media criticism.

These statements came during the press conference held before the match against Villarreal in the eighth round of La Liga, where he criticized the focus on Kylian Mbappé's personal life, stating that there are other issues in football that deserve attention.

The Portuguese coach said: "I find what happened with Mbappé to be ridiculous. For me, a player is a player 24 hours a day, and I have said this before and I still stand by it. Any negative behavior from the player in his private life has consequences, and I always defend that the player is a human who can make mistakes, but he must be responsible."

He added: "I thought in recent weeks that you had enough issues to talk about, but it seems that they weren't enough, even with big issues like Manchester City, and the old story that you don't like to talk about, and the difficult situation in my country with Cristiano Ronaldo, but all of that wasn't enough, Real Madrid is Real Madrid, and there always has to be something to talk about."

Mourinho continued: "I expected the only question to be about the match, but this is the situation. I haven't worked here for 13 years, but I think you know me well enough; I don't lie. I might evade answering some of the more complicated questions, but I don't lie."

Real Madrid's coach emphasized that the players have fulfilled their professional responsibilities during the international break, explaining that the club has handled the players' medical cases according to standard procedures.

He said: "The players of Real Madrid were exemplary, and we worked hard here to ensure their participation with their national teams in a professional manner, and everyone committed to that. The players who were injured returned immediately to Valdebebas and underwent medical examinations, and the injured were here every day."

He added: "As for the players who did not participate with their national teams, such as Arda Güler, I was the only one who granted him two extra days of rest, and no one else made that decision."

Mourinho touched on Mbappé's trip to undergo knee examinations outside the club, saying: "Mbappé went to consult an external medical party regarding his knee, as he suffers from a previous issue that cannot be ignored, and there was complete alignment between Real Madrid's diagnosis and the diagnosis he received."

The coach criticized what he described as the search for new problems, clarifying that the talk began with Kylian Mbappé being in a nightclub, before it turned out that the place had become a venue linked to Fashion Week in Paris. The discussion then shifted to his stay in a quiet hotel in Switzerland.

As he pointed out regarding the situation surrounding Dean Houseman, he stated that the player was at Thiago Pitarca's house, and his car was parked while he was sending a text message. However, he appeared in media coverage as if he were a criminal.

Mourinho added: "The problems that football has faced this week were not enough, so you looked for others. For the first time in ten years, the team has not suffered any new injuries in two months; all the injured players are dealing with injuries from last season. This is a good story, but it doesn't please you."

The Portuguese coach spoke about Real Madrid fans' stance on Mbappé, urging them to be fair and not to be influenced by the goals that may lie behind some media coverage.

He said: "I respect the fans of Santiago Bernabéu, and I hope they are fair and smart enough to understand the paths and objectives. There is a clear goal behind some of what is happening, but I do not want to specify who is responsible, as I could be wrong."

He added: "I assure Real Madrid fans that if any player fails to fulfill their duties towards the club, whether as a player or a citizen, you will not see them on the bench, because they will be at home."

The manager has confirmed Kylian Mbappé's position for the next match, stating that he will play against Villarreal, as he trusts the player's commitment to Real Madrid.

Mourinho said: "Mbappé will play tomorrow, and he won't even be on the bench, because I am sure he has not breached his commitments to Real Madrid."