Mourinho Returns to Madrid: First Champions League Test Is Inter — 'No Pressure to Win'

MADRID – Jose Mourinho walked into the Santiago Bernabéu press room on Monday and immediately rejected the narrative that he owes Real Madrid a Champions League title. "No, it is two different spells," he said, when asked if he was in debt to the club. "When I left in 2013, we won what we won and lost what we lost, and we gave it our all. And that was that. What I need to do now has nothing to do with the past" .

The Champions League was the one major trophy that eluded Mourinho during his first stint at Real Madrid from 2010 to 2013. Despite winning La Liga with a record 100 points in 2012 and the Copa del Rey in 2011, his side fell in three consecutive semi-finals — to Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and Borussia Dortmund . Now, more than a decade later, he returns to a club that has won six European Cups in the intervening years .

Why Inter Is the Perfect Opponent

Inter Milan is not just any opponent. It was at the Bernabéu in 2010 that Mourinho lifted the Champions League trophy with the Nerazzurri, completing a historic treble . That night, he didn't even board the team bus — he got into Real Madrid president Florentino Perez's car and drove away, beginning his first stint at the Spanish giants .

Now, he faces the Italian champions in his first Champions League match since returning. "Of course, I will have time before the game and after the game to see people from Inter, but during the game, they won't see me as a friend," Mourinho said. "I want Real Madrid to win" .

Inter, now coached by Cristian Chivu — a former Mourinho player at the San Siro — arrive in Madrid in formidable form, having won all three of their opening Serie A matches . "They have great quality, maturity, and physical strength," Mourinho said of his former club. "The only surprising thing in recent years is that they haven't won the Champions League again" .

The Trophy That Got Away — and a Changed Context

When Mourinho arrived in 2010, Real Madrid hadn't reached a Champions League semi-final in years. "Back in 2010, we weren't even reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions League, and it had been ages since we'd played in a semi-final," he recalled . That made his three consecutive semi-final appearances a significant achievement.

Now, he returns to a club where the standard is winning the trophy itself. "We've won six Champions Leagues in a little over a decade," he noted . The pressure is different, but Mourinho insists the expectations are the same: "Real Madrid are Real Madrid; you need to win here no matter what" .

The First Test: A Chance to Stabilize

Real Madrid enter the match off the back of a 1-0 defeat to Real Betis in La Liga — their first loss since Mourinho's return . The Portuguese coach is preaching stability above all else. "We lost because we have not been able to translate offensive production into goals," he said . Kylian Mbappe, whose injury-time penalty was saved in that game, insisted the squad remains relaxed .

Mourinho's assessment of the task ahead is clear: "One thing is to work with a stable base. Another thing is to work with a problematic base. And that's the case" . He pointed to Inter as a model of continuity — the club has maintained a 5-3-2 system under three different coaches in recent years .

"The most important thing is to win," Mourinho said. "I can say I want to play well, but I don't want to play well like against Betis and then lose" .

For Mourinho, the match is about the present, not the past. The Bernabéu holds memories of victory and defeat, but his focus is singular: "I want Real Madrid to win. This is football's nature" .