José Mourinho Reflects on 4–1 Win Over Rayo Vallecano
José Mourinho walked away from a 4–1 win over Rayo Vallecano sounding satisfied, but not fooled. For him, this was a game decided in a single burst, not over 90 minutes.
“It was a 45-minute affair,” the Real Madrid coach said. “In 45 minutes, it was over.”
Arda Güler changes the game
The scoreline gave him room to praise, and Arda Güler was at the front of the queue. The young playmaker came off the bench and immediately altered Madrid’s rhythm.
“Arda makes a big impact when he's on the pitch,” Mourinho said. “Arda has a very positive influence on the team's play. When he came on, he made all the difference in terms of the stability of our play.”
Mourinho underlined the depth at his disposal, pointing to the competition for places that will define his selections.
“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. The line-up changes will be made on a match-by-match basis.”
A dominant first half, a drained second
Madrid blew Rayo away early, then visibly faded. Mourinho said he saw it coming.
“I knew the team didn't have the physical and mental strength to play the second half the way they did,” he admitted. “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.”
He didn’t sound alarmed, only realistic about where his squad stands at this stage of the season.
“I'm happy because we've been together for three months, although we can only really count from when we were all here. What we're doing has a lot of positives. We're taking it step by step, always trying to improve.”
Diomande, potential and patience
Yan Diomande started and inevitably drew attention. Mourinho was asked whether there is pressure to pick the attacker. He brushed that aside.
“I'm a bit too old to feel the pressure,” he said. For him, the story with Diomande is development, not debate.
“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.”
Vinícius close to full throttle
If Diomande is learning the level, Vinícius is close to hitting it at full speed. Mourinho described a player on the verge of his physical peak.
“Physically, he's in better shape than ever. He's just a millimetre away from reaching his top speed. His ability to sustain effort is immense. It's a process he's getting to grips with.”
The mental side impressed him just as much.
“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.”
No room for risk at 3–1
The closing stages brought a pragmatic touch from the touchline. At 3–1, with minutes left and Rayo still carrying a threat out wide, Mourinho turned to his bench again, this time with a different idea.
“Simple. I want to win, and I want to win by as many goals as possible,” he said. “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.”
Madrid then added a fourth anyway. “Then we scored the fourth,” he said, “even better.”
A 4–1 win, a sharp first half, a laboured second, and a coach convinced his squad is only at the start of its curve. If this is Madrid still finding their legs, what happens when those 45 minutes of dominance stretch across the full 90?
