José Mourinho: “Real Madrid Are Improving in Every Area”

José Mourinho spoke to Realmadrid TV after Real Madrid’s victory over Deportivo La Coruña at Riazor, where the Spanish giants lifted the Teresa Herrera Trophy following a hard-fought 1-0 win. The Portuguese coach was satisfied with his players’ attitude and highlighted the progress the team continues to make during pre-season.

“It was a serious match against a team that is returning to La Liga,” Mourinho explained. “This trophy has a lot of tradition for them and they gave everything. They forced us to approach the game seriously, and it was a difficult match.”

The Real Madrid coach also discussed his substitutions and the importance of managing his players’ minutes during the preparation period. Mourinho stressed that the main objective of these friendly matches is not only to win, but also to assess his squad and continue building fitness.

“Obviously, I have to make changes because I need to give everyone an opportunity. I don’t want the same players to play too many minutes. Today, it was 45 minutes for Valverde and 45 minutes for Arda Güler,” he said.

“It’s not that this game was only about winning, although of course we wanted to win. Above all, it was about working, giving players minutes and trying different things.”

Mourinho was particularly pleased with the competitive mentality displayed by his team despite the numerous tactical and personnel changes made throughout the encounter.

“One thing I liked is that, in a match of this difficulty and with so many changes—not only changes of players, but also in structure and roles—the team continued playing to get a result,” Mourinho explained.

According to the Portuguese manager, this type of match will provide useful preparation for the challenges Real Madrid are likely to face during the domestic season.

“We will have many matches like this in La Liga, especially away from home, where sometimes you are not able to kill the game off. But when you do what is necessary, you win. Sometimes you win 1-0, like today.”

Mourinho also reminded supporters that several important players are still working separately at Valdebebas and have yet to be fully integrated into the squad.

“One positive thing is that the team is growing. Five players are working at Valdebebas who were not here, and you already know who they are. We are moving forward little by little, and next week things become serious.”

Team progress

🗣️ José Mourinho: "No quiero dar demasiados minutos a los mismos jugadores.

Ellos querían ganar su TROFEO, para nosotros ha sido un ENTRENAMIENTO muy bueno."

MI ENTRENADOR 🤍👏🏻 pic.twitter.com/UuHKatbjJ3

— (fan) REAL MADRID FANS 🤍 (@AdriRM33) August 12, 2026

Mourinho concluded by praising the overall development of his squad while acknowledging that the level of difficulty is gradually increasing as the new season approaches.

“The team is improving in every area, but obviously the difficulty of the matches is increasing, just as we planned. It was very good to come here and experience this atmosphere.”

“We know these summer tournaments are what they are, but for the home team, because of tradition and culture, winning their trophy means a lot. Competing in this kind of environment is very good preparation for us.”

For Mourinho, the victory at Riazor therefore represented much more than another pre-season result: it was another important step in Real Madrid’s preparation for the competitive challenges ahead.