In a disappointing turn of events for Real Madrid, manager Jose Mourinho faced his first defeat since returning to the club, as they fell 1-0 to Real Betis at La Cartuja. Despite a strong performance, Mourinho felt his team deserved more from the match, highlighting missed opportunities that ultimately cost them points.
During the post-match press conference, Mourinho's frustration was evident, although he maintained a composed demeanor. He directed his sharpest criticism towards the tactics employed by Real Betis, who he felt played conservatively to secure a lucky victory. "Congratulations to Betis, who played for a draw and hit the jackpot," he remarked, encapsulating his disappointment with the outcome.
Real Madrid had several chances to equalize, but the game slipped away from them, leaving Mourinho to ponder the nature of their defeat. "Sometimes you lose, and you don’t know why," he said, further expressing that a draw would have felt frustrating given their performance. "If it had ended in a draw, we’d have been frustrated because we’d done more; so imagine how it feels after a defeat," he added.
In discussing specific incidents from the match, Mourinho was asked about Kylian Mbappe’s penalty and the disallowed goal by Carlos Espi. He admitted that he had not closely reviewed these moments and therefore could not provide a detailed opinion. However, he was quick to praise Espi, who had made a significant impact after coming off the bench, only to see his goal ruled out. "Espi is someone who comes on for 10–15 minutes and scores a fantastic goal which, afterwards, I don’t know… might have been offside or not… but he’s an important player for us," he stated, emphasizing the young forward's potential.
Mourinho also addressed the substitution of midfielder Arda Guler, who was performing well but had received a yellow card. The manager explained that he was cautious about leaving Guler exposed to further disciplinary action. "It was difficult to substitute Arda because he was playing so well," Mourinho noted, indicating the tough decisions he had to make under the circumstances.
Refereeing decisions also came under scrutiny, with Mourinho questioning the consistency of officiating during the match. He pointed out that Betis players seemed to navigate the rules more effectively, citing an early foul on Federico Valverde that he believed warranted a yellow card. "I don’t understand how Arda got a yellow card in the first half and it was difficult to substitute him," he remarked, highlighting his concerns about the officiating.
Despite the disappointing result, Mourinho maintained that the performance of his team should not be overshadowed by the defeat. He acknowledged Real Madrid's attacking efforts and the impressive saves made by the Betis goalkeeper. "Betis had a few counter-attacks, as is normal, but the game belonged to Madrid. I haven’t seen the statistics, but I can imagine we created a lot of chances. We had many shots on goal," he said, reiterating his belief in the team's capabilities.
As the dust settles on this match, Mourinho's focus will likely shift to ensuring his squad learns from this setback and continues to build on their strengths as they navigate the remainder of the season.
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