Soccer
Real Madrid defender Raul Asencio believes the club’s new project with Jose Mourinho is going to be “very exciting”.
Mourinho’s return to Madrid was announced last week, with the Portuguese coach looking to end a two-year trophy drought at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Los Blancos finished second in LaLiga in 2025-26, finishing eight points behind rivals Barcelona, while they were knocked out in the quarter-finals of the Champions League by Bayern Munich.
They were stunned in the last 16 of the Copa del Rey by Albacete, which was Alvaro Arbeloa’s first game in charge after Xabi Alonso parted ways with the club following their Supercopa de Espana final loss to Barca.
Asencio, who made 38 appearances across all competitions for Madrid this season, believes Mourinho’s first spell with Los Blancos between 2010 and 2013 is representative of his own style of play.
“I was small, and I saw it – how he changed the team, the competitiveness he introduced into the club, the anger and the grit. I think those are characteristics that make me who I am as a player,” Asencio told El Desmarque.
“Now, with the new project, with Mourinho, I think it is very exciting, and I am looking forward to starting.”
— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadriden) June 11, 2026
Mourinho won 126 of his 174 games at the helm during his first spell in Madrid (D27 L21), winning one LaLiga title, one Copa del Rey and the Supercopa de Espana.
Mourinho’s Madrid became the first team to win the league with 100 points, with Barca also doing so a season later, but Los Blancos’ 121 goals scored in 2011-12 remains the most of any winning team.
When asked if Madrid could win the league next season, Asencio said: “Yes, of course. He did the one with the record. We are going for it.”
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