José Mourinho praised Bernardo Silva after Real Madrid defeated RB Leipzig 4-1 at the Santiago Bernabéu, with the midfielder producing an influential performance as the Spanish side maintained their perfect start to the Champions League league phase.
Silva opened the scoring shortly before half-time, reacting quickest after Maarten Vandevoordt saved Arda Güler's effort. Güler doubled Madrid's lead early in the second half before Kylian Mbappé added a third. Tidiam Gomis briefly reduced the deficit, but Yan Diomande's superb volley restored the three-goal margin.
Mourinho was particularly pleased with Silva, who had not started regularly in recent matches.
“I am satisfied. Silva needed a match like this for a long time, and he has had a great game,” the Madrid coach told Movistar.
He also praised the team's attacking combinations, particularly on the right, but admitted that conceding had frustrated him despite the comfortable final score.
“We have nine points and are very close to the play-offs, but we are still a long way from reaching the 15 points needed to qualify directly,” Mourinho said.
The manager expects the remaining fixtures to provide a tougher test, with an away match in Athens followed by domestic commitments in Valencia. Nevertheless, he believes Madrid are making progress.
Mourinho also defended Vinicius Júnior, whose form and emotional reaction to criticism have attracted attention. The coach insisted he had been satisfied with the Brazilian's contribution against Leipzig, particularly his defensive work.
“People expect more from Vini, for him to be decisive, but I liked his performance. He had more defensive responsibility than the other attackers, and he tracked back very well,” Mourinho explained.
He added that Vinicius needed support from the club's supporters, noting that criticism from his own crowd could be particularly damaging. The manager also stressed that substitutions were intended to change the team's approach rather than punish an individual.
Mourinho was pleased with Eduardo Camavinga's display and explained that selecting his midfield had been difficult, given the performances of Arda Güler and Aurélien Tchouaméni in previous matches. Brahim Díaz had also impressed him whenever given an opportunity.
The coach said the quality of his squad made selection decisions increasingly complicated, particularly when players performed well but could not all be accommodated in the starting line-up.
He was less satisfied with Madrid's defensive lapse for Leipzig's goal, which he felt allowed the visitors back into the contest unnecessarily.
“The goal we conceded today came when we were comfortable, and I did not like that,” Mourinho said.
Courtois also earned praise for his saves, although Mourinho avoided ranking the Belgian against former goalkeepers he had coached, including Petr Čech and Júlio César.
Madrid's fourth goal ensured a convincing result, but Mourinho's focus quickly shifted to maintaining their momentum and preparing for the Clásico against Barcelona.