‘Fed Up’—Jose Mourinho Slams ‘Spoiled’ Cristiano Ronaldo-Era Real Madrid

José Mourinho has labeled his former Real Madrid side “spoiled” and confessed to being “fed up with them” when he left the club after a tumultuous period in 2013.

The 63-year-old, who was re-appointed Real Madrid manager in June, spent three years at the Bernabéu previously, spanning from 2010–2013. He won La Liga and the Copa del Rey during that spell, but, as is often the case with Mourinho, things ended on a sour note.

A fallout with the locker room, most notably captain and club legend Iker Casillas, eventually made his position untenable, and he’s now shed light on his strained relationships with his former players.

In his newly released, self-titled docuseries on Netflix, Mourinho recalled his experiences with the Madrid players during his first spell in Spain’s capital.

Mourinho Bemoans Mentality Problems in Madrid Camp

José Mourinho — Casillas (L) and Mourinho rarely saw eye-to-eye. | Gregg DeGuire/FilmMagic

The Portuguese coach’s feud with Casillas has been well-documented over the years and it was during his first interactions with the goalkeeper where Mourinho realized his players were “being spoiled.”

“The first thing he told me was, ‘I’ve come to ask for more vacation time for the national team players,’” Mourinho reminisced.

“In the second conversation, he asked me to delay training by an hour because there was a lot of traffic in Madrid at the time I wanted to start the session. In the third, he told me they didn’t want to go to the hotel, that they preferred to see each other on matchday and go directly to the stadium.”

He added: “Mentally, they were in a very bad place.”

Jose Mourinho — Mourinho has returned to the Bernabéu ahead of the 2026–27 season. | Antonio Villalba/Real Madrid/Getty Images

Casillas further irked Mourinho after a phone call with compatriot Xavi, designed to cool tensions between Real Madrid and Barcelona players during international breaks. That didn’t go down well with the former Chelsea and Manchester United boss.

“This is a Barcelona vs. Real Madrid match. When you’re with the national team, you can kiss each other twice, but not now. This is war,” said Mourinho. “There are things I don’t accept and never will. When someone doesn’t respect me, it becomes a problem.”

Mourinho ‘Wanted to Leave’ Real Madrid

After a testing period with some sizeable egos at the Bernabéu—those capable of rivaling his own—Mourinho has admitted he was eager to leave the club when he did in 2013.

“I think the players had grown tired of me as a leader, and I of them too,” he said. “I was fed up with them as well, not just them with me. I was fed up with the players and the press.

“I wanted to leave. I felt I was finished.”

Mourinho also revealed he was set to replace Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United shortly after his Madrid departure, even coming to an agreement with the Red Devils. However, after subsequent talks with Chelsea, he opted to return to Stamford Bridge instead.

“One thing is love for soccer, another thing is love for a certain club,” Mourinho confessed when recalling his decision to choose Chelsea over United. “I think this is more powerful than love for soccer and fundamentally, after Real Madrid, I needed to feel that I’m loved.

“For me to lose the chance to be the coach to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson was dramatic, but I don’t regret [it] because it was a decision that I made with my heart.”

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