English Premier League
Jose Mourinho’s swollen eye explained after Real Madrid friendly
Jose Mourinho’s visibly swollen eye during Real Madrid’s friendly against Schalke was caused by a ball striking his glasses in training, rather than any serious incident.
The Portuguese manager attracted widespread attention when he appeared on the pitch at the Veltins-Arena with noticeable bruising around one eye. Images of Mourinho quickly prompted speculation on social media, but the explanation was far more straightforward.
According to Spanish newspaper AS, Mourinho was injured during Real Madrid’s training session on the eve of the match.
“The Portuguese coach was in the middle of training when a ball suddenly struck his glasses, causing them to break and injuring the area around his eye,” the newspaper reported.
The injury was visible as Mourinho oversaw Real Madrid’s final engagement of their pre-season camp in Germany at the stadium in Gelsenkirchen. However, AS said there was no cause for concern and that Mourinho was in good health. The bruising is expected to fade with time.
The match against Schalke carried particular significance for Real Madrid because it was the team’s last fixture during their preparations in Germany. It also marked the first appearances in a Real Madrid shirt for Ibrahima Konate, Ousmane Diomande and Marc Cucurella.
The game meanwhile represented the first outing of the season for Thibaut Courtois, Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe, placing greater focus on Real Madrid’s starting line-up and their final preparations before the new campaign begins.
Despite the injury, Mourinho continued his work as normal and left Germany satisfied with the progress made by the squad during pre-season.
“From a tactical point of view, the ideas are becoming clearer and clearer,” Mourinho said after the match. “The players have exceptional quality, incredible quality. We are working excellently as a team, both with the ball and without it. I think it was a very good experience, and it was also an excellent final training session before the serious work begins.”
Mourinho stressed that the friendly matches were only part of the preparation process and that the real test would come when Real Madrid begin playing competitive fixtures.
“The hard work is the competition, fighting for points,” he added. “That is what we love, and we are about to get there.”
Mourinho therefore returned to Madrid pleased with the way Real Madrid’s preparations had developed. He also left Germany with a bruise around his eye that is likely to remain visible for several days, after an accidental training-ground collision prompted speculation that proved unrelated to the actual cause.