Mourinho faces midfield puzzle as Real Madrid open against Inter | OneFootball

Real Madrid open their 2026-27 Champions League campaign on Tuesday against Inter Milan, whom José Mourinho made European champions before his first spell at the Bernabéu. It comes after his first defeat of the season, to Betis at La Cartuja, a test of his dressing-room management.

El Periódico Mediterráneo reports that scrutiny has centred on his changes, with Arda Guler withdrawn while Vinícius was quiet until the 85th minute and Kylian Mbappé endured his poorest outing so far, missing a penalty in stoppage time.

The bigger headache is midfield. Bernardo Silva, Arda Guler and Eduardo Camavinga are all suspended from the final matchday of last season’s edition. Bernardo, then at Benfica, carries the ban into Madrid, leaving no natural organiser for the double pivot.

Mourinho could drop Jude Bellingham or Brahim deeper alongside Federico Valverde to mirror the roles of Arda or Bernardo. Trent Alexander-Arnold is another technical option, albeit a remote one. A more muscular pairing would be Valverde with Aurélien Tchouameni, together for the first time since their end-of-season altercation, with Tchouameni short of minutes after the World Cup.

The outside bet is Sergio Martínez, newly signed from Racing Santander, who fits that brief but is unlikely to be thrown straight in against Inter. Mourinho tends to favour consistency when forced into tactical calls. Either way, Madrid’s midfield looks weakened by three absences after heavy early-season use.

Source: El Periódico Mediterráneo

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”