Bale trusts that Mourinho will ‘manage egos’ at Real Madrid


Gareth Bale believes José Mourinho has a plan for his return to Real Madrid, aiming to "manage the egos" within the current squad. Mourinho's move to the Spanish capital was confirmed earlier this month, 13 years after his first spell in charge, replacing former manager Álvaro Arbeloa. The Portuguese signed a three-year contract with Los Merengues, looking to turn around the club's fortunes after a titleless season in 2025-26. It was a tumultuous season both on and off the field, with Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni getting into a fight after training, while Kylian Mbappé got into trouble with Arbeloa after claiming to be Madrid's fourth striker. Real Madrid also lost the LaLiga title to rivals Barcelona and suffered a Champions League quarter-final exit, as well as being beaten by second division side Albacete in the Copa del Rey. But Bale, who spent nine years at Madrid and had a season-long loan spell under Mourinho at Tottenham, is confident things will improve under his guidance. “With an experienced coach like Carlo Ancelotti was, José will, hopefully, calm the group down and get them all on the same path,” Bale told The Athletic. "Carlo was a great people manager. He understands the psychology and the pressures that come with that. But he creates that relationship with you where you feel like he really cares about you. Sometimes players aren't playing, but he knows how to keep them close and motivated. At a big club like Madrid, you don't really need to train. You need to manage egos. That's why he [Mourinho] was so successful at the biggest clubs." In the official statement about Mourinho's return, Real Madrid expressed optimism. During his first spell, between 2010 and 2013, Mourinho won 126 of his 174 matches in all competitions (D27 L21) and won three major titles in that period. His winning percentage of 72.4% at Madrid is the highest among all the teams he has coached. Los Merengues have won just four LaLiga titles since he left the club 13 years ago. Bale made 258 appearances for Madrid in all competitions, scoring 106 goals and providing 57 assists, as well as winning 16 major trophies, including three La Ligas and five Champions Leagues. The former Welsh striker registered 19 goal appearances (16 goals, three assists) in 34 appearances during his season-long loan at Tottenham when Mourinho was in charge, and believes his experience managing Madrid will be crucial. "He has that experience too," Bale added of Mourinho. "He just provokes to get the best out of you. He will try to discover each player and find what he needs to make them work. Sometimes it can be [provoking] someone in the media, sometimes it can be just putting an arm around them. José has been at Madrid, he understands the dynamics and knows how things work. He will be putting together a plan to make everything work.

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