Mourinho talks Cucurella, Diomande, Vinicius, Mbappe, Bellingham ahead of Real Madrid vs Malaga

Mourinho talks Cucurella, Diomande, Vinicius, Mbappe, Bellingham ahead of Real Madrid vs Malaga Real Madrid will be gunning for their third straight victory in the 2026/27 La Liga when they host Malaga tomorrow at the Santiago Bernabeu. Los Blancos have made a solid start to the new era under Jose Mourinho, winning their first two matches against RCD Espanyol and Real Sociedad. And, the Portuguese tactician will be eager for his team to build on the positive momentum and set the tone early in the La Liga title race. Mourinho on the new signings Ahead of tomorrow’s game against the newly-promoted Malaga, Mourinho spoke to the media in his press conference, and confirmed that Marc Cucurella will be starting. “There are players who, I keep saying, have had different preseason experiences. We have a strong squad with solutions to compensate for these issues. I can give you an example,” he said. “Tomorrow, Cucurella starts, and Alvaro, who played well against Espanyol and Real Sociedad, will be on the bench. If Cucurella runs out of steam, we have Alvaro to come on. It’s the kind of solution a squad like this provides a coach.” The manager then elaborated on the situation of another new signing, Yan Diomande, saying: “I’m not going to say anything more about individual players. Diomande arrived late and had a difficult summer because of the decision. He didn’t train with Leipzig; when he arrived, he didn’t have a foundation to work with, and he’s progressing gradually. “He’s already had playing time, which is what he needs to develop. Tomorrow he’ll either start or come on as a substitute. He’s getting more and more ready.” On the Vini-Mbappe connection and Bellingham One of the biggest challenges for Mourinho coming into the Real Madrid hotseat was to get the connection between Vinicius Jr. and Kylian Mbappe working. And the early signs have been positive. Off to a solid start. (Photo by Denis Doyle/Getty Images) Explaining what has changed, Mourinho stated: “It’s a team effort. The key is quality. It’s superb quality. A second point, which is secondary but still important, is the empathy between two people. A great deal of empathy, friendship, and collaboration. “When you combine personal empathy with exceptional quality, you have everything you need to keep improving. “The dynamic isn’t 2+9, it’s eleven. That dynamic will motivate them all to keep improving. I couldn’t be happier after just a couple of weeks of working together.” Jude Bellingham has also made an exceptional start to the new season under Mourinho. On whether he considered the Englishman as the glue of this team, the manager remarked: “He’s unique. Super important for the team. He has different talents: physical, mental, tactical, ball recovery, his goal-scoring ability, his aerial game. He’s impressive. I really like talking about Kylian, Vini, Jude. I understand the questions.” However, Mourinho stressed the importance of them operating as a team, saying: “But I’m very happy with everyone. As I said, here we only have great players and truly great players. The team has to function as a team. “Real Madrid fans go to the Bernabéu to see these exceptional players, but they also go to see a team play as a team, suffer as a team, face difficulties as a team, and dominate as a team. I’m the coach of that team, and I really like the players I have.”  On the team Mourinho also spoke about how he is trying to build more unity and togetherness in the team, explaining: “There are two kinds of concentration. The one you’re talking about, being together, sleeping in a hotel, in Valdebebas… The one I’m interested in is the one here (points to his head). It has nothing to do with sleeping in a hotel, it’s here. “Sometimes I think, and it saddens me, that all you see is warm-ups and rondo drills. In my other job, there’s a lot of concentration. This is what interests me. Sleeping or not sleeping, it depends. We’re not sleeping today. The players are together. “We have a tactical meeting now, we’re eating together. We’ll be together a little longer and then we’ll see each other in the morning. Espi, Cucurella, and I are sleeping here. The rest are going home.”  The manager also highlighted the talent coming through the academy, while also confirming that Thiago Pitarch remains firmly in his plans. “There isn’t a single Castilla player I don’t like. Thiago has shown he’s no longer fit for the Castilla division. I like him a lot. He’s part of this group of 21 players. When he’s fit, he’ll be part of the group and will get playing time. I tell him his leg muscles are the same as mine, and he needs to put on a couple of kilos through hard work.”  Close to returning. (Photo by Christian Bruna/Getty Images) Providing an update on the conditions of Endrick and Aurelien Tchouameni, Mourinho elaborated: “Endrick’s the closest to returning. I don’t want to take any risks with Betis. Like I said, he could be ready for Betis or for the first Champions League match. The other situations are more complicated. “With Tchouameni, we have to keep our emotions in check. I don’t want him to be in and out, in and out again. I don’t want to start the season in August with a situation like this. I hope to have Tchouameni fit again, and I prefer to wait a little longer.” On the Ballon d’Or Mourinho also gave his insight into the upcoming Ballon d’Or awards, stating that there was a political element added into it and that unlike in the past, the best players do not always win the prize. “It’s very beautiful individually. You enter into the individual history of a particular player. This dozen players of a very, very high level, of whom we have three or four. It’s normal that this exists as an ambition. “For me, the Ballon d’Or has to go to those players who, when they retire, we miss forever. I miss Maradona, Nazario, Messi, Zidane, Matthäus… You can’t give the Ballon d’Or just because they won the Champions League or the World Cup. If you want to reward the Champions League, give the Ballon d’Or to Luis Enrique. For Spain, De La Fuente certainly deserves it. This is the great tribute. Another thing is the best in the world; it doesn’t have to be from PSG or Spain. “There are two, three, or four, and we know who they are. We know where they are, here. We know who has made history individually this summer. The Ballon d’Or has politics, and if politics gets involved, I don’t like it so much.”