‘There were clashes’ – Courtois opens up on Mourinho’s Real return
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Mourinho’s first spell in charge of Real between 2010 and 2013 was eventful, as he led the club to La Liga and Copa del Rey titles while battling Pep Guardiola’s legendary Barca side.
His return comes after spells with Chelsea, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, Roma, Fenerbahce and Benfica in the 13 years since he departed.
“In the end, I don’t deny I love Real Madrid, and this is the reason I’m going back,” Mourinho said.
”But I don’t have bad feelings in relation to Barcelona at all.
“I just enjoy playing against them because in football, you enjoy playing against the best. The best push you to be better than you are.
“But football is football and I played so many times against Barcelona, starting at Chelsea before I went to Inter.
“Big Champions League matches with Chelsea, then big Champions League matches with Inter, and then I went to Real Madrid. I think it was destiny that put us against each other.”
He added: “Barcelona is seen as the team that plays amazing football.
“Barcelona is seen as the team that scores a lot of goals. But this is a big contradiction.
”The team that scored [the most] goals in the history of Spanish football was my Real Madrid in 2011-12, with 121 goals and 100 points in one season. How defensive was that team?”
The era of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi duelling in El Clasico matches is over, but Mourinho still has no shortage of talent at his disposal at the Bernabeu.
Cucurella has ‘no doubt’ about Chelsea exit for Real Madrid despite Barcelona criticism
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Among them is French superstar Kylian Mbappe, who is lighting up the World Cup with France this summer but is yet to make the hoped-for impact since joining Madrid in 2024, having failed to win a La Liga, Copa del Rey or UEFA Champions League title yet.
“What I want to do is to help the players to be better, to help the team to be better, to help the club to be better,” Mourinho said.
”I’m there to help everybody – not to criticise, not to speak, but to listen.”
When the criticism of Mbappe was put to him, the Portuguese replied: “The only thing I can say about is that he’s a phenomenal player, and I’m going to try to help him to be even better.”