Jose Mourinho has finally established a recognisable Real Madrid starting line-up, using his preferred 4-2-3-1 formation after 100 days of work and 16 matches.
The Portuguese manager’s current selection is Thibaut Courtois, Federico Valverde, Ibrahima Konate, Dean Huijsen, Marc Cucurella, Aurelien Tchouameni, Bernardo Silva, Arda Guler, Jude Bellingham, Yan Diomande and Kylian Mbappe.
The shape emerged during the Clasico and was completed when Belgium goalkeeper Courtois replaced Andriy Lunin. It followed a run of eight wins from eight matches between the two international breaks.
A relatively short injury list has helped Mourinho keep faith with the same players, while the team has gradually taken shape after a succession of tactical experiments.
Midfield changes
Mourinho has repeatedly insisted that no player is bigger than Real Madrid, a message he reinforced when asked about Vinicius Junior’s four-match La Liga suspension following his dismissal against Villarreal.
Vinicius’ absence coincided with Diomande establishing himself in the side. The Ivory Coast player has become part of the combination Mourinho currently favours in major matches, although fixture congestion across all competitions is likely to bring changes.
The holding-midfield positions produced the most experimentation, with seven different pairings and nine changes between matches. Tchouameni and Valverde remain the most-used combination, appearing together against Elche, Atletico Madrid, Villarreal and Roma.
Bernardo Silva’s return to the starting XI later restored balance. He played alongside Valverde against Espanyol, Real Sociedad and Rayo Vallecano, and beside Eduardo Camavinga against RB Leipzig and AEK Athens in the Champions League. Bernardo and Tchouameni then started together against Barcelona, Racing and Valencia.
Other combinations included Camavinga and Valverde against Malaga and Real Betis, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Valverde against Inter Milan, and Arda Guler with Tchouameni against Sevilla. Mourinho’s latest shift began when he moved Valverde back to right-back after using him in midfield during the opening 10 matches.
Six full-back pairings
The full-back positions saw six different partnerships and 13 changes across the first 16 games, the highest turnover of any area despite Real Madrid strengthening both positions in the previous two summer transfer windows.
Denzel Dumfries and Cucurella played together five times, against Real Betis, Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid, Roma and AEK Athens. They were, however, involved in both of Real Madrid’s defeats so far, against Inter and Atletico.
Three pairings featured in three matches each: Dumfries and Alvaro Carreras, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Cucurella, and Valverde and Cucurella. The last of those has become Mourinho’s most settled option.
Defence and attack
Mourinho used four central-defensive pairings and made 10 changes. Huijsen and Konate started together in 10 of the 16 matches, while Antonio Rudiger partnered Konate three times, Huijsen twice and Eder Militao once against AEK Athens.
Up front, Mbappe started all 16 matches and Bellingham 15, missing only the game against Elche, when Guler played as the advanced midfielder.
There were five attacking combinations and 12 changes. Guler, Mbappe and Vinicius were used five times, while Diomande, Guler and Mbappe appeared in four matches and have become Mourinho’s preferred trio recently.
Diomande, Mbappe and Vinicius also started four times, with Brahim Diaz, Mbappe and Vinicius used twice. Sevilla marked the turning point, when Diomande, Endrick and Mbappe led the attack.
Guler has started nine times in the attacking trios, once as the advanced playmaker and once in a holding-midfield pairing. His versatility, alongside Valverde’s ability to cover several roles, has allowed Mourinho to alter Real Madrid’s approach without changing the entire team.
