There is no peace at Real Madrid. The return of José Mourinho to the bench has not brought complete peace to the dressing room, according to information from SER, with two first-team players having recently been involved in a physical altercation. Their names have not yet been released, and the news was also reported by the English Daily Mail.
Journalist Anton Meana claims that relations within the squad are still far from ideal. He stated that the atmosphere in the dressing room is still as icy as it was five months ago, and that even Mourinho's intensity has failed to break the chill. According to him, the chaos surrounding the Mbappé situation has created a tense atmosphere ahead of the crucial month of October.
A physical altercation between Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni had already come to light, with the two having fought in May. Earlier, reports emerged of poor relations between parts of the squad and Xabi Alonso and Álvaro Arbeloa.
Kylian Mbappé left the national team gathering following a winning goal against Turkey. The French Football Federation announced that Mbappə had suffered an injury to the tendon of his left knee. On Wednesday, he returned to training and should be ready for the match against Villarreal.
Mbappə's recovery, however, did not pass without Mourinho's disapproval. While recovering from the injury, Mbappə was seen in a nightclub in Paris, and later went for a bike ride in the Swiss Alps. He posted a video on social media of himself smiling while riding a bike.
Mourinho had previously spoken very clearly to his players about unacceptable behaviour off the pitch. He stated that a footballer is 24 hours a day, and that everything a player does affects their job. He stated that players must not ski or cycle, as falling off a bike could cause them to miss three matches or break a leg. He stated that one must give up many things to be a footballer.
Mbappə returned to Madrid after the international break, and Mourinho is said to have spoken to him immediately about how he spent his time during the recovery. According to the information, he told him that he must be more careful with activities outside of football. Journalist Marco Polo claims that Mourinho was not satisfied with the whole situation – he did not like the way Mbappə was managing his recovery, his outings, nor the fact that he arrived on Monday only after the training had finished.
Real have started well under Mourinho. The Madrid side won five of their first seven matches in La Liga, and are currently six points behind Barcelona. They will have the chance for another win on Saturday, when they host Villarreal at home, followed by a trip to Rome in the Champions League.
