Mourinho considers comparing Real with Barcelona ahead of the Clásico unfair

Mourinho rejects comparisons

Real Madrid head coach José Mourinho called it unfair to compare his team with the reigning Spanish champion Barcelona ahead of Sunday's La Liga Clásico. According to AFP, the Portuguese coach took charge of the Madrid club in the summer, after the team had gone two seasons without major trophies, while Barcelona, under Hansi Flick, have won two consecutive league titles and lead the championship without a single defeat (source: AFP).

The balance of power before the match

The picture ahead of the head-to-head meeting at Camp Nou has shifted somewhat: on Tuesday Barcelona suffered their first defeat of the season — to Paris Saint-Germain — while Real have won their last four matches, including a 4:1 victory over Leipzig. Nevertheless, the Madrid side sit only third in La Liga, six points behind Barça ahead of Sunday's match.

'The beginning of the product'

'I think those who believed a week ago that Barça would thrash us continue to think the same. I don't think the game in Paris or Real's win over Leipzig will change their minds,' Mourinho told reporters on Saturday. He stressed that he has been working with the team for only a few months, unlike Flick, who joined Barcelona in 2024. According to the coach, taking into account pre-season, the return of players from the World Cup and the break for international matches, the team has truly worked together for only a month and a half to two months: 'This is the beginning of the product, we are at an early stage where the coach is learning, analysing, gradually defining paths, and the players are getting to know the coach... comparing a team in such a state, I believe, is unfair.'

Form doesn't matter and the plan for Yamal

Mourinho noted that the teams' current form has no bearing on the Clásico: 'We are in good momentum, winning, playing well, scoring, but in the Clásico what happened before doesn't matter. The Clásico is unique; usually the football world stops to watch it. I hope it will be a great game. And we will win.' Speaking about Barcelona's 19-year-old winger Lamine Yamal, who, according to AFP, is in excellent form and hopes to receive the Ballon d'Or on Monday, Mourinho said he would not change his plans to neutralise him: 'He is a great player, and great players are respected. Respect is one thing; changing plans and structures while forgetting your own essence is another. We will not do that for him or for any other top-class player.'

Why it matters

The Clásico is the centrepiece match of the Spanish season, and its outcome directly affects the title race: a win would cut Real's gap to the leader to three points, while a defeat would strengthen Barcelona's advantage. For Mourinho himself, the match is an early test of his work at a club that, by his own admission, spent two seasons without trophies. It remains unknown how Barcelona's recent defeat to PSG will affect the line-up and the result — sources do not report any squad changes ahead of the match.