The Three ‘Strict Rules’ of Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid Reign

The returning manager is looking to impose discipline at the club.

José Mourinho is laying down the law. | Christian Bruna/Getty Images

Real Madrid’s last season was defined by unwanted off-field drama. As preparations for the new campaign take shape, manager José Mourinho is looking to assert new levels of control over his players.

Mourinho returns to the Bernabéu dugout after a 13-year absence. His first spell at the Bernabéu included a record-breaking La Liga title win in 2011–12, but ended in flames after a series of bitter feuds clouded his final season.

However, following the brief tenures of Xabi Alonso and stop-gap appointment Álvaro Arbeloa, Madrid president Florentino Pérez turned back to a more authoritarian figure like Mourinho as the man to wrangle a locker room that has been rife with in-fighting, division and out-of-control egos.

With preseason underway, AS report Mourinho has set about changing up the squad’s routines, “making everyday life less comfortable and imposing far more control.”

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Mourinho’s Three Rules

José Mourinho is imposing a different vibe at training. | Antonio Villalba/Real Madrid/Getty Images

The report claims the areas of nutrition, injury recovery and punctuality are all getting stricter new guidelines from the boss, who is eager to put his stamp on daily life at Valdebebas.

In terms of nutrition, the players now have less freedom over what they eat while with the club. Instead, a nutritionist “sets the menus for both breakfast and the afternoon snack,” with the food choices designed around optimum performance. Previously, it is stated, players were able to make their own decisions around diet, but the shift in approach has been embraced.

Secondly, new punishments have been imposed for lateness. Rather than a financial penalty handed out for not turning up to training or team meetings on time, late players will be “required to work out alone in the gym, away from the rest of the team.”

Additionally, all team members are required to be at Valdebebas one hour before the scheduled start of training—with no exceptions.

Finally, all injury recovery is mandated to be done at Valdebebas, with outside treatments now not an option as all work is to be coordinated and closely supervised by club staff.

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Can Mourinho’s Approach Work?

José Mourinho has a history of falling out with players. | Federico Titone/SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images

AS’s report suggests that Mourinho’s style of working has so far been adopted without complaint by the players, who appreciate the sense of unity the manager is trying to foster within the team.

The report quotes one source as saying “the atmosphere is very, very good.”

Mourinho’s new rules seem like sensible easy wins in a team that needs structure, and at best the veteran coach is an expert at building a sense of togetherness at his teams. However, more general concerns linger about how his frequently confrontational and volatile man-management style will gel with Madrid’s superstars who are used to holding the power.

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