Mourinho Reveals the Three Things Casillas Asked Him at Real

José Mourinho has opened up about his difficult relationship with Iker Casillas during his first spell as Real Madrid manager, which began in 2010.

The subject is discussed in detail in the Netflix documentary The Special One, released this Tuesday and dedicated to the career and personality of José Mourinho. The documentary revisits one of the most turbulent periods in Real Madrid’s recent history, when tensions inside the dressing room sometimes became almost as intense as the battles on the pitch.

Iker Casillas is the first to explain how he experienced that period. As captain of both Real Madrid and the Spanish national team, the legendary goalkeeper found himself in an extremely delicate position, particularly during the fierce rivalry between Madrid and Barcelona.

“This situation was complicated because you were captain of Real Madrid and captain of the Spanish national team,” Casillas explains. “You were facing teammates who were your enemies on the pitch, but who would then become your teammates with the national team. I didn’t like seeing that and I told the coach.”

Mourinho, however, had a very different vision of the rivalry.

“I told them: ‘This is Real Madrid against Barcelona, a Clasico. When you are with the national team, you can hug each other, but not now. This is war. There are things I don’t accept and I will never accept. And when someone doesn’t respect me, it becomes a problem.’”

“I Realised the Players Were Spoiled”

Mourinho also recalls several conversations he had with Casillas during that period. According to the Portuguese coach, the goalkeeper made a number of requests that immediately raised concerns.

“The first time I spoke with Casillas, he asked me to give more days off to the players returning from international duty,” Mourinho says. “The second time, he asked me to move training back by an hour because there was a lot of traffic in Madrid at the time I wanted the team to train.”

The third request apparently surprised Mourinho even more.

“He told me: ‘We don’t want to meet at the hotel the night before matches. We would rather meet on matchday and go directly to the stadium to play.’ In a very short time, I realised that the players were spoiled.”

A Dressing Room That Became Toxic

Sami Khedira, who was also part of the Real Madrid squad at the time and now works on Mourinho’s staff, provides another perspective on the situation.

🚨 JOSE MOURINHO on IKER CASILLAS in his new @netflix documentary:

"The first three times I spoke with Iker, the first thing he said to me was: I come to ask for more VACATIONS for the players on the National Team.

The second time he spoke with me, he asked me to DELAY training… pic.twitter.com/Y5hJvP1JAK

— Madrid Zone (@theMadridZone) August 11, 2026

“Iker was a Real Madrid legend, loved by the supporters,” Khedira recalls. “Mou put him on the bench and stopped talking to him. He also spoke badly about him in the media. The dressing room became hell.”

According to Khedira, the conflict with Casillas had consequences far beyond the goalkeeper himself.

“After that, José’s relationship with many players, including Cristiano and the Spanish players, broke down. Those players were very important for the atmosphere in the dressing room, and it eventually became poisoned.”

The documentary therefore offers a revealing look back at one of the most controversial chapters of Mourinho’s Real Madrid tenure, highlighting the clash between his uncompromising management style and some of the club’s biggest personalities.