Mourinho Described the Victory Against Inter as a “Crazy” Match
In his return to the Bernabéu, José Mourinho described Real Madrid's 2-1 victory over Inter as "crazy."
José Mourinho's return to the Santiago Bernabéu had an electrifying debut. Real Madrid defeated Inter 2-1 in a match that the coach himself described as "crazy." Kylian Mbappé opened the scoring in the 14th minute after a defensive error, and Federico Valverde doubled the lead shortly after thanks to a goalkeeper's mistake. The goalkeeper redeemed himself with a double save against Mbappé and Bellingham, while Brahim Díaz hit the rebound off the post. Inter responded with Carlos Augusto, who scored in the 77th minute, but it wasn't enough to equalize.
Mourinho: "It could have ended 7-6"
The Portuguese coach was blunt in analyzing the match: "This match was crazy. It could have ended 5-0 for us, 5-5, 7-6... so many chances. Inter is strong, it was hard for us to close them down in the midfield, and yet we could have sealed it 3-0 before halftime." The statistics support that feeling; the Italian team shot 21 times, the highest number by a visitor against Madrid in the group stage since 2004, while the whites generated 16 attempts with an xG of 2.91.
Mbappé, figure and controversy
Beyond the whistles from part of the crowd, Mbappé was decisive once again. With his goal, he equaled Raúl on the all-time Champions League table (71 goals) and led the team in shots on target. Mourinho defended him: "He worked hard, scored an important goal, had two or three chances that he usually converts. I'm not worried, he will always score goals. He will be the top scorer in the Champions League again". The victory also helped to put the defeat against Betis in the league behind. Asked about his return, Mourinho concluded with a phrase true to his style: "If it's easy, it's not for me. If it's difficult, call José."
