Tchouameni, Pitarch and Endrick Return Ahead of Inter Clash

Real Madrid’s treatment room finally opened its doors on Sunday. Aurelien Tchouameni, Thiago Pitarch and Endrick all rejoined group training, handing José Mourinho a badly needed boost before Tuesday’s Champions League opener against Inter Milan.

The timing is tight. The three players have each missed more than a month of pre-season work, a full block of fitness and tactical drilling that Mourinho usually treats as non-negotiable. Dropping any of them straight into the starting XI at this stage would be a gamble, and inside Valdebebas nobody is pretending otherwise.

The problem: Real Madrid are short in exactly the area where Mourinho hates compromise. Eduardo Camavinga, Arda Güler and Bernardo Silva are all suspended for the Inter game, stripping the Portuguese coach of three key options and forcing a rethink of his entire midfield structure.

The loss to Betis still stings. Mourinho wants a reaction, and he has to build it on a line that will look very different from his original plan. Tchouameni’s return at least offers the profile of a true anchor, Pitarch brings energy between the lines, and Endrick gives the squad another attacking spark who can drop into pockets and link play.

For now, though, their role is simple: work.

Over the next few days, the trio will chase sharpness in double sessions, trying to compress a month of conditioning into a handful of training blocks. At the same time they must reconnect with Mourinho’s system, re-learn the pressing triggers, the positional rotations, the small details that decide Champions League nights.

Starting against Inter may be a step too far. But with suspensions biting and pressure rising after Betis, Mourinho might not have the luxury of waiting much longer to lean on them.