Carlos Espí rescues Mourinho’s debut as Real Madrid win in the 90th minute
José Mourinho returned to LaLiga and was immediately reminded that calm evenings at Real Madrid are about as common as short press conferences from the Portuguese coach. His team defeated Espanyol 2–1, with official debutant Carlos Espí scoring the winner in the 90th minute.
Madrid began the match superbly. The visitors pressed high, recovered possession quickly and opened the scoring after only nine minutes. Arda Güler delivered an excellent free-kick into the area and Jude Bellingham beat Marko Dmitrović with a precise header.
The first goal of Mourinho’s second spell in charge came through two players who, according to some pre-season analysis, might struggle to operate in the same team. They required nine minutes to begin answering that question.
Madrid had opportunities to extend their lead, but Dmitrović denied both Denzel Dumfries and Kylian Mbappé. Those missed chances were punished in the 30th minute when Javi Hernández pulled the ball back for the unmarked Álex Calatrava to equalise.
Mourinho’s side lost some of their early intensity and Espanyol became increasingly willing to exploit the spaces left behind. The score remained 1–1 at half-time despite Madrid seeing more of the ball and creating enough chances to be ahead.
The visitors regained control after the break. Dmitrović produced another important save from Bellingham’s header, Federico Valverde struck the post and several further attacks ended with either the goalkeeper or Espanyol’s defensive line blocking the way.
Mourinho responded by turning to his new arrivals. Marc Cucurella and Yan Diomande made their official debuts before Trent Alexander-Arnold, Eduardo Camavinga and Carlos Espí entered in the 79th minute. The final name on that list needed only 11 minutes to become the hero.
Mbappé broke into the penalty area in the 90th minute and, following a moment of hesitation in the Espanyol defence, Espí reacted first. The striker escaped the defenders, went around Dmitrović and sent the ball into the net. One official appearance, one goal and three points for Real Madrid.
The result does not mean the first examination of Mourinho’s new project was passed without concerns. Madrid struggled to maintain their intensity, allowed Espanyol back into the contest and spent long periods failing to convert their superiority. The coach did, however, receive something more valuable than a comfortable debut: confirmation that he has a striker on the bench capable of deciding precisely this kind of match.
Espí was signed to provide the profile of a traditional number nine in difficult closing stages. In his first official match, he performed that role perfectly. The instructions already look remarkably simple: introduce him in the 79th minute and collect the three points in the 90th.
