Eight wins and a warning
Real Madrid beat Valencia 3-0 on Saturday for an eighth straight win in all competitions, and José Mourinho still sounds uneasy. His concern is the international break. With games every three days, he says his squad is tired, and nearly all of it has been called up by national teams.
Had the players stayed in Madrid, Mourinho explained, his staff could manage their recovery closely. Now that work falls to other coaches. He admitted he has never managed a national team, but said he imagines those coaches want to work with their players, and that these players need rest.
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A pointed message to friends
Mourinho said he would be a nuisance to clubs if he ever became a national coach, because he would only think about his own team. That is why he does not plan to phone anyone, including Carlo Ancelotti, who coaches Brazil.
He still sent Ancelotti a message through the press. Vinicius Junior and Endrick are in the Brazil group, and if Ancelotti plays Vinicius, Mourinho said he would be grateful. He added that nobody around Ancelotti wants to see a player hurt through overwork, and that coaches owe it to players to treat their recovery professionally.
Zidane’s call
The warning lands on another former Real man too. Zinedine Zidane has Kylian Mbappé, Ibrahima Konaté, Eduardo Camavinga and Aurélien Tchouaméni in his France squad. France travel to Italy on Thursday at 20:45 local time for their fifth Nations League game, and the line-up will show how much Zidane listened.
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