José Mourinho Reflects on Madrid's Win Over Rayo Vallecano
José Mourinho didn’t just enjoy the scoreline. He enjoyed his bench.
After Real Madrid’s 4–1 win over Rayo Vallecano, the coach pointed straight at the depth behind his starting XI, with Arda Güler at the heart of it. The young playmaker came on and immediately changed the rhythm of the game, and Mourinho made sure everyone understood how much he values that kind of influence.
“Arda makes a big impact when he's on the pitch,” he said, underlining how the Turk had brought calm and control to Madrid’s play. “When he came on, he made all the difference in terms of the stability of our play.”
“A 45-minute affair”
Mourinho’s reading of the game was blunt. For him, this was a contest decided before the interval.
“I'd describe the match as a 45-minute affair. In 45 minutes, it was over,” he admitted. He knew his side couldn’t maintain the same intensity after the break, and he didn’t pretend otherwise. The final stretch, he suggested, told its own story.
“The image that sums it all up is how Bellingham played in the last 10 minutes. Practically everyone made mistakes in build-up play, struggled to press, and with shots on goal… I already knew that. I expected it to be like that.”
Madrid had done the damage early. The rest was about managing tired legs and a heavy workload.
Building something, step by step
Despite that drop-off, Mourinho sounded content with the broader picture. He stressed how little time this group has actually had together and how much room there still is to grow.
“I'm happy because we've been together for three months, although we can only really count from when we were all here,” he said. “What we're doing has a lot of positives. We're taking it step by step, always trying to improve.”
The message was clear: the project is still in its early stages, but the trajectory pleases him.
Diomande, the pressure and the potential
One of the names on everyone’s lips was Yan Diomande. Start him and the questions stop; leave him out and the noise grows. Mourinho cut through that narrative in his own way.
“I'm 100% certain that if Diomande hadn't started today, the first question would have been, ‘Why isn't Diomande playing?’ There's nothing but quality on the bench,” he said, before brushing aside any suggestion that outside pressure dictates his choices.
“I'm a bit too old to feel the pressure,” he added. For him, squad variety is a luxury, not a headache. “In football you can have different squads; sometimes you have to pray that nobody gets injured, other times you've got plenty of options.”
Diomande, he insisted, is still at the beginning of his journey at this level.
“He'll keep improving bit by bit. He hasn't been at the top level for long and has a lot to learn tactically. But he's got incredible potential. In one-on-one situations, with his passing, shooting… He gives us loads of options. He can play where Vini does, on the right; Arda can play there too, or where Bellingham plays. Right now, I want to help him develop.”
Competition for those attacking spots is fierce. Mourinho intends to use that to shape the next version of his Madrid.
Vinícius close to full throttle
If Diomande and Arda are still being moulded, Vinícius is already a reference point. Mourinho highlighted the Brazilian’s physical and mental state, suggesting the forward is on the verge of hitting his absolute peak.
“Physically, he's in better shape than ever. He's just a millimetre away from reaching his top speed,” he said. “His ability to sustain effort is immense. It's a process he's getting to grips with.”
The coach also praised Vinícius’ maturity and sense of responsibility.
“Mentally, he's very strong; he knows Madrid better than anyone. He plays with a great sense of responsibility, that of representing Real Madrid and the Brazilian national team. He's calm. The goals will come.”
For Mourinho, the performances are already there. The numbers, he believes, will follow.
Closing the door, then finding a fourth
Even at 3–1 up late on, Mourinho’s instincts didn’t soften. His final substitution was not about spectacle. It was about control.
“Simple. I want to win, and I want to win by as many goals as possible,” he said. With Rayo still threatening down the flank, he chose security over showmanship. “When you're 3–1 up with five minutes to go, and Rayo have a very powerful full-back capable of creating danger… At that point, I felt it was best to shut the door. For me, the time for fancy footwork and scoring goals was over.”
Then came the twist only football delivers so often.
“Then we scored the fourth, even better.”
A bench full of options, a star edging towards top speed, youngsters being hardened under a demanding coach. If this is what three months together looks like, what will Madrid resemble when Mourinho finally has the full 90 minutes exactly as he wants them?
