Jose Mourinho's Real Madrid: Full Squad and La Liga Challenges

Jose Mourinho finally gets his Real Madrid back.

After weeks of patched‑up sessions, academy promotions and waiting for World Cup stragglers to reappear, the second Mourinho era in Madrid starts to look like a real team again from Monday. The last five internationals – Marc Cucurella, Kylian Mbappé, Aurélien Tchouameni, Ibrahima Konaté and Jude Bellingham – are due at Valdebebas, and with them comes the chance to shape something resembling a first XI.

Full squad at last

Madrid’s World Cup contingent went deep into the tournament and then disappeared on deserved, extended holidays. Mourinho, back in the white hot-seat, has had to make do without a core of his new side, leaning on what he had and throwing a spotlight on academy prospects such as Alexis Ciria.

That improvisation phase ends now. Cucurella, fresh from winning the World Cup with Spain, and Konaté, another of the summer’s big defensive bets, will go through the usual medical checks before stepping onto the training pitch for what will effectively be their first real sessions as Madrid players. Mbappé, Tchouameni and Bellingham will join them, swelling the quality and the competition in an instant.

The talent is not in doubt. The timing is.

Racing the clock to La Liga

Those five arrive behind the rest in sharpness and rhythm. Their bodies are still somewhere between the World Cup and the beach, while the squad that stayed behind is already into week five of Mourinho’s pre-season.

The coach’s first challenge is a delicate one: get them ready fast without breaking them. Push too hard and he risks injuries. Go too soft and they will hit the La Liga opener undercooked.

Two games will carry a lot of weight. Madrid face Deportivo La Coruña in the Teresa Herrera Trophy on 12 August, then travel to Germany to meet Schalke 04 on 16 August. These are no longer just commercial fixtures on the calendar; they are live auditions for Mbappé, Bellingham, Cucurella and the rest to find match rhythm and understanding.

Every minute matters. Espanyol await on 22 August, and Mourinho has just under two weeks with a full deck.

Mourinho’s second Madrid, still a mystery

Up to now, pre-season has thrown out hints rather than answers. Shapes have been tested, youngsters trusted, but the real Mourinho blueprint for Madrid 2.0 remains hidden by circumstance.

That veil starts to lift this week. With his stars back, he can finally drill combinations, test partnerships and decide who truly belongs in his preferred XI. The scrutiny will be fierce from the first whistle. His reputation still carries weight, but recent years have not been kind to the myth of the all-conquering Mourinho.

At Real Madrid, patience is not part of the job description. A slow start can turn the atmosphere from nostalgic welcome to cold judgment in a handful of games.

Midfield puzzle without a marquee solution

All this takes place against the backdrop of an incomplete midfield rebuild. Madrid’s grand plan for the centre of the pitch never fully materialised. Rodri turned them down. Bernardo Silva stands as the only significant reinforcement in that area.

The club do not expect that to change before the window closes. They see no midfielder on the market worth the cost and complications, and Mourinho has publicly backed the group he has, insisting he does not need more signings.

The strategy is clear: trust the existing core at the top level, and quietly look to the future.

Eyes on Sergio Martinez

That future might run through Racing Santander. Madrid have been tracking teenage midfielder Sergio Martinez, viewed as a high-grade talent with the tools to anchor a midfield for years.

Despite the occasional description slip – he has been labelled a defender in some reports – the profile is that of a modern holding midfielder: clean on the ball, tactically mature, strong enough to impose himself in the centre and increasingly reliable in his defensive work. For a squad that still lacks long-term depth in that specific role, he fits a clear need.

But Madrid are not alone. Barcelona currently lead the race, ahead of the men in white, and Racing Santander are in no mood to make life easy.

A small deal with big complications

Racing recently renewed Martinez until 2029, and that fresh contract comes with a firm stance. They want his full €3 million release clause paid this summer and are pushing for a hefty sell‑on percentage. For any buying club, that combination eats into the upside of a future sale if the player does not make the leap to elite level.

Even if Madrid decide to meet those conditions, another question follows: where would Martinez play? A place in Castilla looks the realistic first step, given the congestion in the senior squad and Mourinho’s need to prioritise established names in a pivotal season.

So the picture is split in two. On one side, Mourinho finally has his stars back and a short runway to mould a team capable of starting La Liga at full throttle. On the other, the club quietly juggles long-term bets like Martinez while accepting that the midfield overhaul will not be completed in one summer.

The Bernabéu will not judge any of that on balance sheets or scouting reports. It will judge on how this suddenly complete, star-studded squad looks when the real football starts in two weeks’ time.