Florentino Perez talks Vinicius Jr. renewal, Valverde future, Jose Mourinho and more | OneFootball

Real Madrid ended a turbulent 2025/26 season without a single major trophy, finishing second in La Liga behind Barcelona with 86 points.

Alvaro Arbeloa, who took charge in January following the mid-season dismissal of Xabi Alonso, has now also left the club, leaving the Bernabeu in need of a new direction heading into the summer.

Against that backdrop, President Florentino Perez spoke to El Pais, offering his thoughts on the dressing room tension, Mourinho’s potential arrival and Vinicius Jr’s renewal delay, among other topics.

On the manager search

With Jose Mourinho heavily linked with a return to the club he managed between 2010 and 2013, Florentino heaped praise on the Portuguese tactician.

Florentino Perez praised Mourinho ahead of his likely appointment. (Photo by Alex Broadway/Getty Images)

“Mourinho? He’s a great manager. I know him, and he knows Real Madrid and the players, but there are many others.”

He was equally clear about what the club’s priority is when it comes to appointing the right candidate.

“Finding a coach is important, and even more important is that he’s injury-free and can have a preseason. When you start without a preseason, you’re finished. But we’ll also have a good manager.”

On Vinicius, Mbappe and the dressing room

The supposed incompatibility between Vinicius Jr. and Kylian Mbappe has been one of the dominant narratives of Real Madrid’s difficult season. Florentino dismissed it without hesitation.

“When I hear that Vinicius and Mbappe are incompatible, I think it’s nonsense. They are the two best players in the world.”

On the futures of Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni, he confirmed neither of them will leave this summer.

“Valverde and Tchouameni will stay? For me, yes, of course.”

Reports of a fractured dressing room have circulated throughout the season, and Florentino used the opportunity to redirect the blame, not at the players, but at whoever has been feeding information to the press.

“Crisis in the dressing room? The dressing room is wonderful. They’re the same guys they’ve always been, and they’re all friends.

Florentino Perez dismisses crisis brewing in the Real Madrid dressing room. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

“But if one of them steps on another’s foot during training and they get angry, we shouldn’t blow it out of proportion,” he said.

“And if we should get angry, it’s because they’re leaking information. Some people say: ‘The problem is that they fight.’ No, the problem is the one who leaks it.”

“The atmosphere is perfect. Only a few bad apples leak us, and we’ve got them figured out,” he added.

Finally, on Vinicius Jr.’s contract renewal – one of the most important pieces of business Real Madrid face this summer – Florentino left no doubt about how highly the Brazilian is valued at the club.

“Vinicius’ renewal? There’s time. I’d love for him to stay forever. He’s won us the last two Champions Leagues and he identifies really well with the club. You know who doesn’t like him? Those who aren’t Real Madrid fans,” he concluded.