With a late goal from young prospect Endrick, Real Madrid defeated Espanyol 2-1 away in league play, and Mourinho commented on his team's performance at the post-match press conference.

Match Summary

I think we deserved to win, but Espanyol didn't deserve to lose. In the second half, we controlled and pressed the game very well, taking big risks. I think we should have won, but Espanyol played very well, defended exceptionally, launched very threatening counterattacks, and were well-organized, yet came away empty-handed. They must feel bad. But, I repeat, we deserved to win.

Is This Formation Settled?

When we talk about our defensive system, there's one thing that cannot be ignored at all: physical fitness. I remember that none of their players participated in the World Cup, and they've been training together for a long time, which is clear. I also didn't expect Bellingham to play that long; some players haven't fully recovered their fitness, and to achieve the high press I want, we still lack training and match accumulation. Therefore, this victory is very meaningful for us, and the substitute players deserve great credit. A frustrated bench doesn't help, but an energetic bench can help you win matches. This was a difficult game, and these three points are very important.

On Vinicius

I'm taking a risk now because you (the media) will probably dig up old stories from a few months ago, bringing up what I said about Vinicius when I was the opposition. Now Vinicius is my player. He's not a saint, but what they do to him is excessive. It's been like this from the first minute of the match—it's become a fixed pattern, a tried and tested tactic among opponents: I kick him, now it's your turn to kick him; if I get a yellow card, then you kick him; if I'm substituted and my replacement has no card, then keep kicking him.

He needs to control his emotions well. I told him that if he scores a goal, he should be careful about how he celebrates. We live in a society that advocates against bullying, yet Vinicius is still being bullied by opponents and the public. We need to guide him and prepare him as much as possible, that's all.

On Bellingham

When we talk about top players in the world, Real Madrid has many of them: Bellingham, Vini Jr., Mbappé... they all are. I felt uncertain whether to start Bellingham or bring him on as a substitute. I don't know if I made the right decision, but his physical and mental qualities are very strong.

I think this is his position—I want him connected with the attackers. He's a striker who should be closer to goal. If he plays as a number 6 or 8, we lose his threat near the box. I like Bellingham like this; when he's at peak fitness, he can give you 90 minutes of high-quality performance.

Today we paired Bernardo Silva and Valverde in midfield, sacrificing some of Valverde's attacking ability. His long-range shot hit the post... If he were paired with Tchouaméni or Camavinga, he could get into that area more often. But when paired with Bernardo Silva, we need Valverde to help build attacks from the back, so his offensive involvement is reduced. We're still in an adaptation process, and ideally we can complete it without dropping points.

On Endrick

He's a very impressive young talent. We live together at Valdebebas training ground—myself, him, the coaching staff, and Cucurella. We have breakfast, lunch, and dinner together. He's very impressive. Imagine, tomorrow (Sunday) he'll make his debut, and to make your debut in front of the president and his family like this—it couldn't be better. He's living his dream, but he remains humble in training.

He works very hard. In the match, he made a brilliant pass to Kylian after receiving the ball with his back to goal, setting up a one-on-one chance. He's an excellent player. When we learned that Gonzalo might be going to Fulham, Júnior suggested some candidates, we discussed their characteristics, and after detailed analysis, we were very satisfied with Endrick. In a match like this, we needed a player like him.

Espanyol Manager Manolo said he doesn't trust the referee's standards, so he substituted a player with a yellow card. What about you?

I won't say that because we won, but I think the referee performed very well today. That's my impression from the bench. Perhaps tomorrow I'll change my mind after watching the replay in my office, but I think he did a very good job—no VAR intervention was needed, no controversy in the penalty box, and no decisions affected the match or its result. I respect Manolo's opinion.

With so many new players on the team, how do you coordinate them?

The hardest part is that only 11 players can start, and the other 12 must sit on the bench. This is still with injured players absent from the squad; if no one were injured, we'd have to leave one or two people in Madrid. I told the players that I cannot solve this problem—I cannot start 14 or 15 players—they themselves must learn to deal with frustration. If they don't work hard and lose their fighting spirit... I won't say we won today because of five substitute players, but all five who came on helped the team very well and were in excellent form. I told them from day one that even in friendly matches, Real Madrid has no reason not to try as hard as possible to win.

Diterjemahkan oleh AI.

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