José Mourinho's Plan: Güler as the New Özil in Madrid
José Mourinho has walked back into Valdebebas with an old idea in mind and a new protagonist to carry it out.
Real Madrid’s Portuguese coach is plotting a return to the club’s classic transition game, the ruthless, vertical football that once turned the Bernabéu into a counter-attacking conveyor belt. At the heart of that plan, according to reports in Spain, sits Arda Güler – and a role that sounds very familiar.
Mbappé as Ronaldo, Güler as Özil
The blueprint is simple in theory, brutal in execution. Kylian Mbappé steps into the role Cristiano Ronaldo defined for a generation: the spearhead of every break, the reference point for every rapid transition. Behind him, in the shadows between the lines, Güler is being earmarked for the job Mesut Özil once made look effortless.
Inside the club, the 21-year-old is viewed as the ideal candidate to inherit that creative brief. The comparison with Özil has followed him ever since his €30 million move from Fenerbahce in the summer of 2023, and not only because of the shared Turkish background.
Both are defined by progressive passing and a rare calm in tight spaces. Both see passes others simply don’t. Both specialise in that final, defence-splitting ball that turns a deep, compact back line into a broken shape and a scoreboard problem.
Spanish media have leaned into the parallel for months. Now Mourinho’s return has given it fresh oxygen.
The coach who unlocked Özil
This is, after all, the coach who squeezed the very best out of Özil in his first spell in Madrid. Under Mourinho, the German playmaker became the conduit for one of the most devastating counter-attacking sides Europe has seen, feeding Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Ángel Di María with a steady stream of chances.
So when Mourinho walks back into the Bernabéu and a player with Güler’s profile is already in the building, the dots are easy to join.
Güler’s first year in Spain has been a lesson in patience. Surrounded by stars, he has struggled to nail down a permanent starting place, but he has not stood still. Coaches have used him wide on the right, drifting into the right half-space, and even dropping deeper to help in the build-up. Every role has underlined the same thing: he understands the game, and he can adapt.
Mourinho now wants to strip away the noise and lean into what Güler does best – combination play, quick thinking in crowded areas, and creativity at the edge of the box.
A report from Mundo Deportivo outlines the idea but leaves one key question hanging: has Mourinho already sold this plan behind closed doors, or is it still pinned to his own tactical sketchpad as he shapes the squad?
A rare pre-season window
Timing, for once, is on everyone’s side.
Turkey’s early exit from World Cup qualifying duty means Güler returns to Madrid without the physical and mental fatigue of a long international campaign. That opens a rare, precious window for Mourinho: weeks of uninterrupted work on the training ground with a player he wants to turn into a central pillar of his system.
Pre-season, then, is no mere warm-up. It becomes an audition.
Within this framework, Güler has the chance to claim something he has not yet enjoyed in Madrid – a clearly defined, leading role. Not a utility option on the right. Not a late substitute to change the rhythm. A reference point.
The idea, as framed in Spain, is “Mesut Özil 2.0”: a modernised version of the old role, tailored to today’s Real Madrid and the presence of Mbappé up front. Same zones, same responsibility to connect, but in a team built around different stars and different rhythms.
Güler has already shown flashes that he owns the raw materials for that job. The next few weeks will tell whether Mourinho can turn those flashes into a full-time function – and whether Madrid are about to rediscover an old weapon with a new name on the back of the shirt.
