29 August 2026

Real Madrid will be chasing a third consecutive win in La Liga 2026/27 when they welcome Malaga to the Santiago Bernabeu tomorrow.

Los Blancos have begun the new Jose Mourinho era in encouraging fashion, winning their opening two fixtures against RCD Espanyol and Real Sociedad.

The Portuguese manager will now want his side to carry that momentum forward and lay down an early marker in the La Liga title race.

Speaking to the media before tomorrow’s meeting with newly-promoted Malaga, Mourinho confirmed that Marc Cucurella will be in the starting XI.

“There are players who, as I keep saying, have had different pre-season experiences. We have a strong squad with solutions to compensate for these issues. I can give you an example,” he said.

“Tomorrow, Cucurella starts, and Alvaro, who played well against Espanyol and Real Sociedad, will be on the bench. If Cucurella runs out of steam, we have Alvaro to come on. It’s the kind of solution a squad like this provides a coach.”

The Real Madrid boss then expanded on the situation involving another new signing, Yan Diomande.

“I’m not going to say anything more about individual players. Diomande arrived late and had a difficult summer because of the decision. He didn’t train with Leipzig; when he arrived, he didn’t have a foundation to work with, and he’s progressing gradually.

“He’s already had playing time, which is what he needs to develop. Tomorrow he’ll either start or come on as a substitute. He’s getting more and more ready.”

One of Mourinho’s biggest tasks after taking charge at Real Madrid was to get the understanding between Vinicius Jr. and Kylian Mbappe working properly. The early signs, though, have been encouraging.

Off to a solid start.

Explaining what has changed, Mourinho said: “It’s a team effort. The key is quality. It’s superb quality. A second point, which is secondary but still important, is the empathy between two people. A great deal of empathy, friendship, and collaboration.

“When you combine personal empathy with exceptional quality, you have everything you need to keep improving.

“The dynamic isn’t 2+9, it’s eleven. That dynamic will motivate them all to keep improving. I couldn’t be happier after just a couple of weeks of working together.”

Jude Bellingham too has made an outstanding beginning to the new campaign under Mourinho. Asked whether he sees the England midfielder as the glue of this team, the manager replied:

“He’s unique. Super important for the team. He has different talents: physical, mental, tactical, ball recovery, his goal-scoring ability, his aerial game. He’s impressive. I really like talking about Kylian, Vini, Jude. I understand the questions.”

Even so, Mourinho underlined the importance of collective functioning, saying: “But I’m very happy with everyone. As I said, here we only have great players and truly great players. The team has to function as a team.

“Real Madrid fans go to the Bernabeu to see these exceptional players, but they also go to see a team play as a team, suffer as a team, face difficulties as a team, and dominate as a team. I’m the coach of that team, and I really like the players I have.”

Mourinho also spoke about his efforts to create greater unity and togetherness within the squad.

“There are two kinds of concentration. The one you’re talking about, being together, sleeping in a hotel, in Valdebebas… The one I’m interested in is the one here (points to his head). It has nothing to do with sleeping in a hotel, it’s here.

“Sometimes I think, and it saddens me, that all you see is warm-ups and rondo drills. In my other job, there’s a lot of concentration. This is what interests me. Sleeping or not sleeping, it depends. We’re not sleeping today. The players are together.

“We have a tactical meeting now, we’re eating together. We’ll be together a little longer and then we’ll see each other in the morning. Espi, Cucurella, and I are sleeping here. The rest are going home.”

The manager also praised the quality emerging from the academy and confirmed that Thiago Pitarch remains very much part of his plans.

“There isn’t a single Castilla player I don’t like. Thiago has shown he’s no longer fit for the Castilla division. I like him a lot. He’s part of this group of 21 players.

When he’s fit, he’ll be part of the group and will get playing time. I tell him his leg muscles are the same as mine, and he needs to put on a couple of kilos through hard work.”

Close to returning.

Giving an update on Endrick and Aurelien Tchouameni, Mourinho said:

“Endrick’s the closest to returning. I don’t want to take any risks with Betis. Like I said, he could be ready for Betis or for the first Champions League match. The other situations are more complicated.

“With Tchouameni, we have to keep our emotions in check. I don’t want him to be in and out, in and out again. I don’t want to start the season in August with a situation like this. I hope to have Tchouameni fit again, and I prefer to wait a little longer.”

Mourinho also shared his view on the upcoming Ballon d’Or, saying that politics has become part of the process and that, unlike in the past, the best player does not always win the award.

“It’s very beautiful individually. You enter into the individual history of a particular player. This dozen players of a very, very high level, of whom we have three or four. It’s normal that this exists as an ambition.

“For me, the Ballon d’Or has to go to those players who, when they retire, we miss forever. I miss Maradona, Nazario, Messi, Zidane, Matthäus… You can’t give the Ballon d’Or just because they won the Champions League or the World Cup.

If you want to reward the Champions League, give the Ballon d’Or to Luis Enrique. For Spain, De La Fuente certainly deserves it. This is the great tribute. Another thing is the best in the world; it doesn’t have to be from PSG or Spain.

“There are two, three, or four, and we know who they are. We know where they are, here. We know who has made history individually this summer. The Ballon d’Or has politics, and if politics gets involved, I don’t like it so much.”