José Mourinho’s return has given Real Madrid a sharper identity, and the early signs are hard to ignore. Three league matches into the 2026/27 season, Madrid have collected nine points, sit first, and have done it with a level of control that did not appear in Mourinho’s first spell at the club.
Madrid have opened the campaign with three straight wins, and the sequence has already shifted the tone around the squad. The results have not come through luck or late escapes; they have come through a team that looks organised, balanced, and increasingly confident in its roles.
Their opening run has unfolded like this:
The Malaga match stood out most because it looked complete from front to back. Jude Bellingham struck first in the 19th minute, then forced an own goal shortly after. Kylian Mbappé added another, and Arda Güler finished the scoring after being set up by Vinícius Júnior.
Perfect starts can be misleading, but this one carries extra weight because it contrasts sharply with Mourinho’s first period in charge. Even across three full seasons at the club, he never began a league campaign with three wins from three.
| Season | Opening league record | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 2010/11 | 2 wins, 1 draw, 0 losses | 7 |
| 2011/12 | 2 wins, 0 draws, 1 loss | 6 |
| 2012/13 | 1 win, 1 draw, 1 loss | 4 |
| 2026/27 | 3 wins, 0 draws, 0 losses | 9 |
That comparison does not prove a title race will follow, but it does show that the current project has started more cleanly than any previous Mourinho side in Madrid. For a club that has demanded immediate answers, that matters.
Madrid’s early stability has been helped by a major summer refresh. The club invested heavily to give Mourinho a squad better suited to his demands, and the new arrivals already look targeted rather than decorative.
Each signing points to the same idea: make Madrid harder to unsettle, then give the attack more freedom to decide matches.
The most interesting change is not just in personnel, but in positioning. Bellingham is now operating in the space behind Vinícius Júnior and Mbappé, which keeps him central to the build-up without forcing him to compete for the same channels as Madrid’s two quickest forwards.
That adjustment creates a simple but dangerous pattern. Bellingham can arrive into pockets between the lines, Vinícius can attack wide and cut inside, and Mbappé can stretch defenders vertically. With those three threats working in different zones, opponents are left choosing which danger to contain first.
Even with the early momentum, Mourinho has not sounded like a manager celebrating anything beyond the moment. After a preseason win over Deportivo, he kept the focus on the work still ahead, stressing that the important stages were still to come.
“You know the five who are at Valdebebas. And next week, the real work begins.”
That mindset fits him. Mourinho rarely allows a strong start to become a comfort blanket, and Madrid will need that discipline if they want this opening burst to become something lasting. The club has gone two seasons without a major trophy, so early wins buy patience, not trophies.
For now, though, the message is clear: this is a more assertive Real Madrid, and Mourinho is already shaping them into a side that looks familiar in the best possible way.
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