La Liga: Mourinho Begins Second Real Madrid Spell With Dramatic Victory At Espanyol
By Sedara Philip
José Mourinho made a winning return to competitive action as Real Madrid manager after debutant Carlos Espà scored a dramatic 90th-minute winner to secure a thrilling 2-1 victory over Espanyol.
The result gave Mourinho the perfect start to his second spell in charge of the Spanish giants, with Real Madrid having to work hard for all three points in a closely contested encounter.
Real Madrid made a flying start and opened the scoring in the ninth minute.
England midfielder Jude Bellingham rose highest to meet Arda Güler’s free-kick and powered his header beyond the Espanyol goalkeeper to give the visitors an early advantage.
Espanyol responded strongly and eventually restored parity in the 30th minute.
Summer signing Cala arrived at the far post to convert Javi Hernández’s cut-back, bringing the hosts level and setting up an intriguing second half.
Real Madrid dominated large portions of the contest after the equaliser and came agonisingly close to regaining the lead on several occasions.
Bellingham saw another powerful header tipped onto the crossbar by Espanyol goalkeeper Marko Dmitrović, while Federico Valverde struck the base of the post with a curling effort.
Mourinho then turned to his bench, introducing several of the club’s new signings as Real searched for a decisive breakthrough.
Among those introduced were Carlos EspÃ, Marc Cucurella, Yan Diomande and England international Trent Alexander-Arnold.
The changes eventually paid off in spectacular fashion.
In the 90th minute, Diomande found Kylian Mbappé inside the penalty area. The ball eventually fell kindly for EspÃ, who kept his composure before calmly finishing to send the travelling Real Madrid supporters into wild celebrations.
The goal capped an impressive competitive debut for the 21-year-old forward, who joined Real Madrid from Levante for £21 million.
Mourinho, who was appointed on a three-year contract in July, also handed competitive debuts to Denzel Dumfries, Ibrahima Konaté and Bernardo Silva as he began rebuilding the squad.
The Portuguese manager previously managed Real Madrid between 2010 and 2013, winning La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup during his first spell.
The 63-year-old returns to Madrid with a wealth of experience, having won 26 major trophies during his managerial career, including three Premier League titles with Chelsea and Champions League triumphs with both Porto and Inter Milan.
Real Madrid endured two trophyless seasons before Mourinho’s appointment and will hope his return can restore the club to the top of Spanish and European football.
For now, EspÃ’s late strike has given the new Mourinho era the perfect beginning.
Sedara Philip is a Sports writer, an administrator,Journalist,and editor
