Mourinho on Zidane's Tchouameni Decision: A Surprising Privilege for Real Madrid
Zinedine Zidane has started his reign as France manager with a big call: Aurélien Tchouameni is not in his first squad for the national team’s upcoming four matches.
On paper, it looks brutal. A key midfielder for club and country left out. In reality, it’s a calculated pause.
Tchouameni has been wrestling with a groin problem and has barely featured for Real Madrid this season — just three appearances, only one of them from the start, in the 3-2 defeat to Elche. His year never really got going. No proper pre-season, no rhythm, no sustained run of games.
So when Zidane’s list dropped without his name, the obvious question followed: did Real Madrid lean on France to keep him out?
José Mourinho was having none of that.
‘I Had No Influence’
Speaking on Saturday ahead of the Madrid derby, the Real Madrid coach moved quickly to clear the air. He insisted the club had not applied any pressure on the French federation or on Zidane.
“I had no influence on the decision. I didn’t call Zidane and Zidane didn’t call me. It took me by surprise,” Mourinho said.
The choice, he stressed, came from a direct conversation between the new France boss and the midfielder himself.
“They (Zidane and Tchouameni) discussed and agreed that the best thing for him was to use this break to do the pre-season he couldn’t do.”
No backroom politics. No tug-of-war between club and country. Just a player and an international coach agreeing that his body needs a reset.
A Pre-Season in October
Mourinho has been blunt about why Tchouameni’s minutes have been so limited. The groin injury, combined with the absence of a proper pre-season, has left the midfielder short of the physical base required to anchor Real Madrid’s midfield week after week.
The coach underlined that this window — with France stepping back and Real Madrid’s schedule easing — is exactly what the player needs to finally catch up.
Tchouameni, he argued, must treat this spell as the pre-season he never had. Conditioning work. Recovery. A clean build-up without the strain of international travel or back-to-back high-intensity games.
From Real Madrid’s point of view, it is a gift.
‘For Us, It Is a Privilege’
Mourinho did not hide his satisfaction at how the situation has unfolded, even as he acknowledged his initial surprise.
“The national team manager let him know that he was counting on him for the future and they agreed on this decision which, for us, is a privilege,” he said.
The message from Zidane to Tchouameni is clear: this is not a demotion, it’s an investment. France still see him as part of their long-term core. The omission is temporary, not terminal.
And for Real Madrid, it means something precious in a congested season — time.
“Because after the derby, he will have his days off and will be able to come back stronger,” Mourinho added.
A Crucial Window Before Villarreal and Roma
Once the Madrid derby is out of the way on Sunday, Real Madrid’s calendar opens up. They do not play again until October 10, when they face Villarreal, before a Champions League tie against Roma four days later.
That gap is where this plan either pays off or falls flat.
If the groin problem finally settles and Tchouameni can train and build properly, Mourinho gains a fully fit midfielder just as the season’s demands spike again. The hope inside the club is that this stretch allows him not only to heal but to finally impose himself as a regular starter under the Portuguese coach.
France have stepped aside for now. Real Madrid have their window. The rest is up to Tchouameni — and his body — to turn this “privilege” into a turning point.
