Derby defeat exposes Mourinho’s Madrid problems
The Madrid derby was supposed to be an early measure of how far Mourinho has taken Real Madrid. Instead, it exposed how much remains unresolved.
Dean Huijsen’s red card ultimately tilted the contest in Atletico Madrid’s favour, but Madrid were already struggling to impose themselves before it. Their midfield lacked control, their forwards were too often disconnected and Simeone’s side repeatedly found ways to unsettle them.
The 2-1 defeat therefore matters beyond the points dropped. It raised familiar questions about a Madrid side that still has plenty of individual quality but has yet to consistently look like a cohesive team.
Still short of control
The biggest problem was in midfield. Mourinho began with Aurelien Tchouameni alongside Federico Valverde, Jude Bellingham and Arda Guler, but Madrid rarely controlled the tempo. Atletico were more aggressive in the duels, more compact without the ball and better at turning possession into territory.
That left Madrid’s forwards increasingly disconnected.
Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe can decide games through moments of individual brilliance, but neither was able to consistently influence this one. Bellingham was also pushed away from the areas where he can cause the most damage, while Guler struggled to find space between Atletico’s lines.
The issue is not a lack of talent. It is how that talent is being organised.
Against opponents prepared to defend deep and allow Madrid’s forwards to attack space, their quality can be decisive. Atletico presented a different test. They compressed the pitch, disrupted Madrid’s passing and forced them into a more physical game.
Madrid never found a reliable answer.
The attack still lacks a rhythm
That is particularly concerning because this was not a radically unfamiliar front six.
Valverde, Tchouaméni, Guler, Bellingham, Vinicius and Mbappe also featured in last season’s 5-2 derby defeat. The scoreline this time was far less damaging, but the similarities should concern Mourinho.
Madrid again struggled to create sustained pressure from open play. Their forwards often received the ball with little movement around them, making Atletico’s defensive job relatively straightforward.
Mourinho reacted immediately to the red card, withdrawing Guler and Vinicius for Yan Diomande and Antonio Rudiger. With 10 men, it was a logical move. But it also underlined how little attacking momentum Madrid had established before the dismissal.
For a team with this much attacking firepower, that cannot become a recurring pattern.
Huijsen’s mistake exposes a wider issue
Huijsen will understandably attract much of the scrutiny after giving away the penalty and being sent off.
But the bigger concern is the situation that left him exposed.
Atletico found space behind Madrid’s defence and forced the young centre-back into a decision he could not afford to get wrong. Simeone’s side had already shown they were willing to attack the space around him, just as they had in the corresponding fixture last season.
Huijsen is an excellent distributor and an important part of Madrid’s build-up. His defensive vulnerability is a different matter.
The problem, then, is not simply whether Huijsen should have made the challenge. It is whether Madrid are consistently protecting their defenders well enough to prevent such situations arising.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. The derby suggested they are not.
New faces, familiar concerns
Mourinho has changed much of the back line since last season, but the underlying vulnerability remains.
When Madrid lose possession, the distances between their midfield and defence can become too large. That leaves opponents with room to attack transitions, particularly when Madrid’s full-backs are advanced.
Atletico are almost perfectly equipped to exploit that weakness.
Their second goal was a case in point. Giuliano Simeone was given the space to carry the ball forward before releasing David, who finished clinically. Madrid were caught moving backwards rather than dictating where the attack would take place.
Against a side as comfortable in transition as Atletico, those moments are costly.
More than a refereeing debate
Madrid have legitimate reasons to be frustrated by the refereeing, particularly over challenges they believed should have brought red cards for Atletico.
But those decisions should not obscure the footballing issues.
The sending-off made Madrid’s task far more difficult. It did not cause their midfield problems, their lack of attacking cohesion or the space Atletico had already begun finding between the lines.
Those are the issues Mourinho now has to solve.
His squad has enough individual quality to win matches without playing at its best. The bigger challenge is building a side that can control difficult games when brilliance alone is not enough.
That is what Atletico exposed on Sunday.
The derby did not decide Mourinho’s season. It did, however, provide his clearest warning yet that Madrid need more than new names and star quality to close the gap at the top.
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