Mourinho defends Real Madrid after Betis defeat: “The team played a great match”

Real Madrid’s perfect start to the LaLiga season ended with a 1-0 defeat against Real Betis at Estadio La Cartuja. José Mourinho’s side came close to rescuing the result during a chaotic finish, but Carlos Espí had a bicycle-kick equaliser ruled out and Álvaro Valles saved Kylian Mbappé’s stoppage-time penalty.

Mourinho refused to judge the performance only by the final score. The Portuguese coach praised Madrid’s control, attacking production and attitude, arguing that his players had done more than enough to leave Seville with a positive result.

SOMETIMES YOU LOSE WITHOUT KNOWING WHY

“I think the team played a great match. Sometimes you lose and you do not know why,” Mourinho said after the game.

He described Madrid as the dominant side and praised his centre-backs for controlling the contest. The visitors produced plenty of attacking football and enough chances to win. Mourinho admitted that even a draw would have felt frustrating, making the defeat particularly difficult to explain.

His assessment did not erase Madrid’s finishing problem. They created the opportunities but failed to convert them. Mourinho’s point was that the structure, effort and general level of the performance did not resemble those of a team that deserved to leave empty-handed.

PARROTT PUNISHES MADRID IN A DRAMATIC FINISH

The decisive goal arrived in the 81st minute. Thibaut Courtois saved the initial header, but substitute Troy Parrott reacted first to the rebound and scored from close range.

Madrid responded immediately. Mbappé struck the crossbar four minutes later before Espí produced a spectacular bicycle kick from Vinícius Júnior’s delivery. The goal was disallowed for offside following a VAR review.

There was still one final opportunity. Natan brought Vinícius down inside the penalty area deep into added time, handing Mbappé the chance to equalise. Valles guessed correctly and saved the penalty, completing an outstanding finish to the evening for Betis.

MOURINHO BACKS ESPÍ AND EXPLAINS GÜLER DECISION

Mourinho was particularly pleased with Espí’s contribution. The young forward was introduced for the closing stages and came within a marginal offside decision of scoring one of the goals of the season.

The Madrid coach praised his potential, humility and willingness to work. Although the goal did not stand, Espí’s performance strengthened the belief that he can provide an important option from the bench.

Mourinho also explained why Arda Güler was substituted despite playing well. The midfielder had already received a yellow card which his coach considered unfair. Mourinho did not want to risk losing him to another questionable decision as the game became increasingly tense.

The Portuguese suggested that Betis were more experienced at influencing the atmosphere around refereeing decisions. However, he stopped short of blaming the referee for Madrid’s defeat.

A TYPICAL MOURINHO MESSAGE FOR BETIS

Mourinho congratulated Manuel Pellegrini and Betis, but added a characteristically pointed observation. In his view, the hosts had played for a draw and ended up landing the jackpot.

He declined to offer firm opinions about Espí’s disallowed goal or the late penalty because he had not yet reviewed the incidents in detail. Mourinho also confirmed that Marc Cucurella’s substitution was caused by cramp rather than an injury.

FIRST DEFEAT, BUT NO REASON FOR PANIC

Madrid had opened the campaign with victories over Espanyol, Real Sociedad and Málaga. Betis became the first team to take points from Mourinho’s side, ending their perfect start with one clinical rebound and a decisive performance from Valles.

The result hurts, but Madrid were not short of ideas or commitment. They continued creating chances until the final seconds and came within small margins of changing the outcome several times.

Mourinho therefore chose to protect his players rather than turn one defeat into a public inquest. His message was calm and constructive: the overall performance was strong, but a team producing that many opportunities must finish the game before everything depends on one stoppage-time penalty.