Arya News - Real Madrid kickoff their campaign at Espanyol in Barcelona as Jose Mourinho’s targets winning La Liga return.
Who: Espanyol vs Real Madrid
What: Spain’s La Liga
Where: RCDE Stadium in Barcelona, Spain
When: Saturday, August 22, at 9:30pm local time (19:30 GMT)
How to follow: Al Jazeera Sport will bring you all the buildup from 16:30 GMT ahead of our live text commentary stream
Jose Mourinho’s second spell at Real Madrid begins in Barcelona this weekend in La Liga – but at Espanyol rather than up against his and Los Blancos’ bitter rivals.
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Mourinho is also aiming to restore some of the intensity and attitude that defined his first Madrid reign, from 2010-13, after two seasons without winning a major trophy steered president Florentino Perez back to him.
Al Jazeera Sport takes a look at Real’s curtain call.
What led to Mourinho’s return to Real Madrid?
The 15-time European champions have suffered dressing room turbulence, with tensions between players and a succession of coaches unable to find a convincing balance on the pitch.
None of Carlo Ancelotti, Xabi Alonso or Alvaro Arbeloa could fit together the team’s attacking stars – Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham – without compromising the team defensively.
Perhaps disciplinarian Mourinho might be the man to make it work, to turn superstars into willing runners without dulling their attacking edge.
Mourinho says he returns as a different coach, more mature after years of experience in England, Italy, Turkiye and elsewhere.
“I’m much more mature, less emotional, and more in control… as always, learning from mistakes,” said the 63-year-old this week, although he insisted he was not “more boring”.
Mourinho made clear from his first days back at Madrid’s Valdebebas training ground what he wants from his team.
“I am here… to create a culture of work, responsibility, ambition,” said Mourinho, describing his role as a “mission”.
What transfer business have Real Madrid done in the summer?
Perez has certainly given Mourinho the ammunition he needs to catch up with Barca.
Los Blancos spent heavily this summer, making Ivorian winger Yan Diomande their record signing at 140 million euros ($163m) and bringing in Bernardo Silva and Marc Cucurella among a series of high-profile arrivals.
However, some would argue that in not signing Rodri – who they were linked with before he joined rivals Barcelona – Madrid have not reinforced sufficiently in midfield.
Diomande’s arrival adds yet another major attacking threat to a squad that already boasts plenty of them. It may be former Manchester City midfielder David Silva who proves the more significant signing when it comes to balance.
Madrid have spent years trying to move on from the era of Toni Kroos and Luka Modric, whose ability to control matches allowed the forwards great freedom and reduced the team’s exposure to relentless opposition attacks.
Silva is not a direct replacement for either, but his technical quality gives Mourinho an option for solving a problem that has persisted since their departures.
Whether he will be enough to give Madrid a foothold in the biggest games, including against Hansi Flick’s double defending Spanish champions, remains to be seen.
How did Mourinho’s first Real Madrid spell play out?
Mourinho’s first Madrid spell was defined by his rivalry with Pep Guardiola and a Barcelona side that dominated Spanish football.
Clasicos became increasingly bitter during his time in Madrid, with touchline confrontations, accusations of refereeing bias and a succession of heated encounters making the rivalry increasingly dark and compelling.
Mourinho’s Madrid eventually ended their rivals’ domestic dominance by winning the title in 2011-12 with a record 100 points.
This season Madrid visit Barcelona in late October in the first Clasico of the campaign, already eagerly awaited.
Between now and then, starting at Espanyol on Saturday, Mourinho has two months to get his team fit, firing and most importantly, all on the same page.
Prediction
The supercomputer of Opta, the sports analysts, rates Real Madrid as huge favourites with a win probability of 62.4 percent to Espanyol’s 15.6 percent.
Head-to-head
This will be the 202nd meeting between the clubs with Real Madrid winning 119 of the encounters and Espanyol claiming the spoils on 46 occasions.
Espanyol team news
Kike Garcia (hamstring), Javi Puado (knee) and Leandro Cabrera (suspended) all miss out for Espanyol.
Edu Exposito (muscle) faces a late fitness test following the opening day 3-0 win against Levante.
Espanyol predicted lineup
Dmitrovic; El-Hilali, Riedel, Nunez, Hinojo; Gonzalez, Lozano; Calatrava, Hernandez, Dolan; Fernandez
Real Madrid team news
Real have a long list of absentees for their season opener with Eder Militao (muscle), Rodrygo (knee), Raul Asencio (thigh), Ferland Mendy (hip), Endrick (muscle) and Aurelien Tchouameni (muscle) all missing out.
Jude Bellingham’s match fitness is set to be assessed and a place on the bench may be forthcoming.
Real Madrid predicted lineup
Courtois; Dumfries, Huijsen, Konate, Cucurella; Valverde, Bernardo; Diaz, Guler, Vinicius; Mbappe