Real Madrid coach José Mourinho spoke to the media on Thursday ahead of Friday night’s fixture against Real Betis and was asked about defender Raúl Asencio, who was convicted for drink driving, and he said, “I spoke with him when I arrived. I did so because of things that happened in the past. Since I arrived, I haven’t spoken to him anymore. I don’t discuss situations outside of Valdebebas anymore. Because inside, he’s a true professional. When he was healthy, no one trained harder or better than
him. Now that he’s injured, he’s the first to arrive and the last to leave. Extreme dedication. But a Real Madrid player is a Real Madrid player 24 hours a day. What you do off the field can damage your reputation and that of the club. I’m not happy. But hey, we all make mistakes. But when they pile up, it’s a different story.”
Mourinho on what he expects from his team against Betis
“It has to be a great performance. Otherwise, they won’t win. Betis is a very good team, and given Real Madrid’s recent results there… it’s hard to win there. And to do so, you have to be at your absolute best. There’s no other way.”
Mourinho on Messi leaving the Argentine national team
“Talking about Messi is complicated! There isn’t much more to say. And there are no words that can describe his quality as a player. He came into this World Cup at 38 or 39 years old, and he’s been exactly what we’ve seen. He’s one of those players you’re going to miss. We’ll have to watch some MLS games, which isn’t something I do particularly often, to make the most of these final years. Because he’s one of those players who, as I said in a previous press conference, you’ll always miss. And he’s one of the greats of our generation.”
Mourinho on La Fábrica players
“Many of them train with me from time to time, but even those who don’t come in, we pay close attention to them. They’ve done a great job in recent years, and the result is that they’ve made it to the first team… Thiago… and the many millions that Real Madrid has earned from transfers that aren’t really transfers, because in the end, Real Madrid brings the players back whenever it wants to. As the season unfolds, with suspensions, injuries… opportunities will always arise. I’m getting to know them better and better, and we’re in daily contact with Manu and La Fábrica. And all the kids can… I’m not going to pick everyone, but they can look forward to making it to the first team.”
Mourinho on Sergio Martínez
“He’ll be on the bench tomorrow. And from that, you can already get a rough idea of what the plan is. He’s only trained with the first team for a few days, but the club signed him—even knowing he wouldn’t be a first-team player right away—because we’ve analyzed him and seen that he’s a young player with potential. He’s already had a bit of experience in the Segunda and Primera División. He has potential; he needs to work hard. The level of intensity here is different. But he’s here. Tomorrow he’ll be there, along with Rivas, Cestero… and we’ll see if he plays. But it’s already a step forward.”
Mourinho on Julián Álvarez
“That situation… no one knows it better than Simeone. And I don’t see myself having absolutely anything to say about it. What I usually say is that when a player isn’t satisfied, by September 1st he has to be on board or he won’t play. My feeling is that starting yesterday and at least until the end of the season, he’ll be an important player for his club.”
Mourinho on rotations in midfield with the Champions League in mind
“We’ll talk about that after the game. But until then, let me stay optimistic and happy. We’ll focus on Betis and put this whole thing behind us.”
Mourinho on Asencio’s future
“The club has opened an investigation, and as long as that investigation is ongoing, I still consider him a Real Madrid player. And he’ll remain one for a few more weeks. This helps me stay out of the problem you mentioned. He’s a Real Madrid player.”
Mourinho on Dani Ceballos
“We spoke for three minutes on the phone; I told him I wasn’t counting on him. And although players often cling to their contracts, in this case he understood the situation and said he’d rather become a free agent and decide his own future. We reached an agreement, terminated his contract, and Ceballos became a free agent to make his own decisions.”
Mourinho on whether La Liga’s level has dropped with only two teams competing for the title
“I think Atleti will be in the mix too, and even if they don’t say so publicly, they’ll feel they can do it. The way they’ve signed players conveys internal stability, keeping the coach, the organizational structure, the training methods… something that gives them more strength than if you change things every so often. For me, they’re contenders as well. Then there are the teams that will be in the Champions League zone, Betis, Villarreal… they’re strong teams. And tomorrow we’ll see just how strong Betis is. The Basque teams are incredibly tough. For me, this isn’t an easy league. But here there’s constant pressure to always win. In France or Germany, the contenders know they’re going to be champions every time. Not here. And that pressure carries a significant risk.”
Mourinho on Manuel Pellegrini
“I never hold anything against anyone, because we can’t turn back time. But in the past, obviously, there are things you say and in the end, you feel like an idiot. You feel like you were wrong. That’s why I don’t hold a grudge. But I’ve said some really stupid things to him. Later on… and he’ll probably laugh if he hears me say this, I paid dearly for it. Because the championship he won with Manchester City, I gave it to him. Because if, with two games left, Liverpool had tied with Chelsea, he would’ve been the champion. I’ve paid dearly for it. And later, he showed great class toward me during a Betis-Roma friendly where, because of a referee who deeply loved Betis, we were left with only seven players on the field. And he said: “We’re not going to run them over; let’s leave it as it is,” which was 3–1 or something like that. He could have scored eight against us. He’s a great coach, a role model as a person. I like him a lot. Tomorrow, a hug before the game, after… and off we go.”
Mourinho on talking to former coaches about this team
“Not with Xabi. With Álvaro, yes. But it wasn’t because of him, I’d already gotten the information. It’s not easy for a former coach to talk about your previous situation. But it wasn’t because of him…“
Mourinho on signing Luka Modric
“We wanted him so badly… but it was almost impossible to negotiate with Levy. But we were keeping an eye on signing him while we were in the United States, and one day he was signed, the next he wasn’t, one day yes, the next no… Real Madrid was almost ready to say, “It’s impossible,” but the player wanted it. Because he could play as a six, an eight, or a ten. He was the perfect fit. You guys drove me crazy for a few months. But then… it all fell into place.“
