“He is no saint, but...” — Mourinho’s sharp statement about Vinícius

Madrid's Real Madrid club defeated Espanyol 2-1 away in the second round of the Spanish championship. However, after the match, the Madrid manager José Mourinho focused on the systematic pressure being exerted on the team's winger, Vinícius Júniorby opponents and the stands.

The experienced Portuguese specialist openly stated that a specific "tactical fouling" strategy is being used against the Brazilian player on the pitch.

“One after another they commit fouls”: Mourinho exposes the scheme

In the press conference, José Mourinho described in detail the situation that occurs in matches against Vinícius:

“You can remind me of what I said when I was an opponent of Vinícius a few months ago. Now, Vini is my player. He is not a saint, of course, but what is being done to him has gone too far.

From the first minute, the same scene repeats: first one player fouls him, then another. If someone gets a yellow card for it, the next player comes in and commits a foul. The opponent gets substituted and leaves the pitch, and the new player who comes on starts playing roughly against Vinícius without a yellow card yet.”.

“We live in an anti-bullying era, but...”: Controlling emotions

Mourinho also emphasized that he has urged the Brazilian star not to fall for provocations and to manage his emotions:

• Caution in goal celebrations: “He must be able to control his emotions. I told him that even if he scores, he needs to be careful during the celebration,” said the coach;

• Pressure and provocations: “We live in an era where there is a lot of talk about fighting bullying, but Vini is still facing serious pressure and harassment from opponents and fans. Our task is to teach him to be mentally prepared for such provocations and to handle the situation correctly.”

Real Madrid's upcoming schedule

The Royal Club's next La Liga schedule:

• Postponed Matchday 1: Real Madrid vs Real Sociedad August 26 rescheduled date;

• Matchday 3: The Madrid side will play their next match August 30 against Málaga.

The most important conclusion: Mourinho did not excuse Vinícius, but defended him

The phrase “He is no saint” shows that Mourinho is not approaching Vinícius blindly.

However, the Portuguese coach's main grievance lies elsewhere: he believes that the rough play on the pitch, constant provocations, and external pressure against Vinícius should not exceed the limit.

At the same time, Mourinho set a clear demand for his student — to control emotions and not give opponents the reaction they expect.

Thus, the most interesting statement after the victory over Espanyol was not about the result, but about the controversies surrounding Real Madrid's star forward. Now, how Vinícius responds to Mourinho's advice in upcoming matches will be of even greater interest.