The idea that Jose Mourinho was the man to restore order to the mayhem that is Real Madrid and prevent a third successive campaign without a major trophy appears to be unravelling fast.
Last season was a turbulent one for Los Blancos that saw managers sacked, players jeered by their own fans, teammates fighting each other, all topped off by bitter rivals Barcelona securing a second successive La Liga title.
To control a dressing room of rampant egos, Madrid president Florentino Perez turned to the biggest coaching ego of them all, brining Mourinho back for his second stint at a club who sacked him back in 2013. But just nine matches into the new season, all is not well in the Spanish capital.
On Saturday at the Bernabeu, Madrid were labouring towards a 1-0 win over Villarreal – courtesy of teenager Yan Diomande's first goal for the club – when Vinicius Junior scored with a clinical first-time finish.
It sparked ferocious celebrations from the attacker, with Mourinho sprinting across the pitch to join in. But the joyous scenes were cut short when referee Isidro Diaz de Mera Escuderos was asked to view the pitchside monitor by VAR, where he saw Vinicius clearly pulling the hair of Nathan Saliba in the build-up to the goal.
Just 20 minutes after coming off the bench to replace Trent Alexander-Arnold, Vinicius was shown a red card and the scene quickly descended into chaos as furious Madrid players surrounded the referee, while the Brazilian had to be dragged away by teammates.
An incandescent Mourinho, who had already spent the entire game berating officials, earned himself a yellow card, then refused to appear for the post-match press conference.
The player himself has since issued a brief apology on social media – saying “sorry to the team and the fans” – but could now receive a three-match ban that would see him miss the Clasico on October 25 against a table-topping Barca team that has won eight from eight in La Liga so far.
While Mourinho continues to rant and rave about perceived refereeing agendas against his team, the fact remains they are not playing well. They find themselves in fourth place, six points shy of Barca, having lost to Real Betis and the derby against Atletico Madrid, where Mourinho was again left bemoaning refereeing decisions.
And the biggest puzzle facing the veteran Portuguese is coaxing Vinicius – who signed a bumper new six-year contract extension over the summer – back into top form.
The 26-year-old has managed just one goal in 672 minutes of action this season prompting questions as to why Mourinho has not turned to other attacking options in his squad.
“Some players need time to get back to their usual level … and I’m not going to hide from that,” he insisted ahead of the Villarreal game.
“I never criticise the Madrid fan base; I only respect it. It breaks my heart to see a boy like him suffer. He wants to become that Vinicius again who wins matches and makes the difference … Vini deserves support.”
Mourinho has also found himself defending top-scorer Kylian Mbappe – who has eight goals in nine games, taking his Madrid career tally to 94 in 112 matches – after the French attacker was criticised for making trips to Paris and Switzerland while still recovering from a minor knee injury picked up on international duty.
“What I can promise is when a Real Madrid player doesn't behave the way a Real Madrid player is supposed to … They won't have the chance to whistle, because they'll be at home,” said the 63-year-old, who dismissed the criticism as “ridiculous” while also accusing the media of trying to turn Madrid fans against Mbappe.
After starting their Uefa Champions League campaign with a 2-1 win over Inter Milan – with Mbappe and Federico Valverde on target – they now face another of Mourinho's former clubs in Roma at the Stadio Olympico on Wednesday.
The Italian side are currently third in Serie A after drawing 0-0 at Como on Sunday, when they had top-scorer Donyell Malen shown a straight red card for a reckless tackle on home defender Kaiki. The Giallorossi's opening European game saw them draw with Fenerbahce in Turkey.
Mourinho's three-year spell in the Italian capital was a trademark mix of success and controversy that ended in the sack.
He guided Roma to their first major European crown when they defeated Feyenoord 1-0 in 2022's inaugural Europa Conference League final, which also meant Mourinho became the first manager to win all four major European trophies, having previously lifted the Uefa Cup, Champions League and Europa League.
“I knew the moment I arrived what it meant to the people,” said Mourinho after the match in Tirana. “They had been waiting for something like this. This was not work tonight, this was history. We had to write history. We wrote it.”
But 12 months later, Mourinho was once again left ranting at officials after Roma were beaten by Sevilla on penalties in a Europa League final that witnessed a tournament record 13 yellow cards. His infamous foul-mouthed tirade at referee Anthony Taylor in the car park after the game earned him a four-match ban.
The following season, Mourinho was sacked after a poor run of results, but the Portuguese insists his love for the club remains intact. “I think the bond between me and the Roma fans was created by the fact … they understood that for me there was only Roma and the Roma fans. I fought for them, I gave everything,” he said last week in an interview with Corriere dello Sport.
“What do I expect from the Olimpico? I do not expect banners. I do not expect anything. I expect respect.”
