Jose Mourinho defends stars Vinicius and Mbappe

Real Madrid head coach Jose Mourinho has fiercely defended his star forwards, Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe, after they faced criticism from fans at the Santiago Bernabeu. Speaking at a press conference ahead of the La Liga match against Rayo Vallecano, the manager emphasized that the players are giving their all on the pitch. This is reported by Goal.com reports.

The Royal club has been recording inconsistent results lately. Following a defeat in the league match against Real Betis, a hard-fought victory was secured against Inter in the Champions League. However, this success also caused dissatisfaction among some fans in the stands.

According to information from 20Minutos, some sections of the stadium whistled at Vinicius and Mbappe during the game, expressing their discontent. The team manager responded calmly to the fans' reaction at Friday's press conference, expressing full confidence in his key attacking stars.

Why do fans throw stones at a tree that bears fruit?

Jose Mourinho used a traditional Portuguese proverb to explain why fans are targeting the Madrid club's brightest players. He called on the fans to recognize what both forwards are doing for the benefit of the team.

Mourinho stated at the press conference: "There is a proverb in Portugal: you only throw stones at trees that have fruit. You don't throw stones at a tree that gives you no harvest. What Vini has achieved here in recent years, how many Champions Leagues he has won, how many goals he has scored — he is a tree with a lot of fruit. People are throwing stones because they want fruit; they expect the best performance from Vinicius."

Mbappe's defensive dedication

The experienced coach also praised the defensive discipline shown by French forward Kylian Mbappe in the match against Inter. He noted that in the final minutes of the game, with the team down to ten men, the player gave his all on the pitch.

"I apply the same proverb I used for Vinicius to Kylian," the coach said. "There are things I see and value highly. I saw the team in the 90th minute, for the last two minutes, playing with ten men, and I saw Mbappe playing as a left-back. He covered for Marc Cucurella, who was exhausted."

Mourinho added that despite being physically tired, Mbappe guarded the left flank until the end under the demands and motivation of his coach.