Puyol believes Real Madrid could be ‘even stronger’ with Mourinho, McManaman warns he must beat Barcelona

With the World Cup finally in the rearview mirror, club action is taking center stage again. On Tuesday, Barcelona legend Carles Puyol and Real Madrid icon Steve McManaman took questions from Bolavip as LALIGA and ESPN held a press conference to anticipate both teams’ season debuts. One of the biggest storylines in Spain is the return of Jose Mourinho to “La Casa Blanca,” where he already coached from 2010 to 2013.

Puyol, who captained Barcelona from 2004 to 2014, knows perfectly well what is like to face a Madrid side led by Mourinho. In his response to Bolavip, the legendary defender made it crystal clear how highly he thinks of the Portuguese manager.

“Well, we’re talking about a great manager,” Puyol said when asked by Bolavip about his memories facing Mourinho and how dangerous his return to Madrid can be for Barcelona. “I met him at Barcelona when I was young and coming through the academy, and when I made it to the first team, we could already see that he knew a lot about football.

“Then he went to other clubs, built a good résumé, and eventually arrived at Real Madrid, where Real Madrid had a very good team. We were going through a very strong period, and I remember a great rivalry and many individual battles. The Barça-Madrid rivalry is huge, but in those years, on top of that, it was Guardiola against Mourinho, Messi against Cristiano, and two great, great teams.

“So we’ll see how he does now. I still think Barcelona have a very good team and will be able to have a good season, but it’s clear that one of their biggest rivals is Real Madrid, and with Mourinho they could be even stronger.”

McManaman believes that Mourinho ‘needs to finish above Barcelona’

McManaman, who made more than 90 appearances for Real Madrid from 1999 to 2003, has a deep understanding of the expectations surrounding Mourinho in his second stint at the club.

“He needs to win,” McManaman responded to Bolavip. “It’s simple as that. He needs to beat Barcelona, he needs to win the league. I don’t necessarily think he needs to win the Champions League, but he needs to finish above Barcelona.

“He’s been brought in because the last two years have been disappointing. So he needs just to get the best out of the players, but more importantly, it’s to finish above Barcelona. He has to do it instantly. Real Madrid can’t go three years without winning anything. So Jose has to hit the ground running and he has to be successful straight away. That’s what he’s been brought in for.”

McManaman is being realistic. Those are the standards at Real Madrid. If not, just ask Carlo Ancelotti. Carletto may have led the club to its 15th UEFA Champions League/European Cup title in 2024, yet one bad season the next year sealed his fate. Well, it was a bad season for Real Madrid’s standards. Finishing second in LALIGA and failing to win either the UCL or Copa del Rey led to Ancelotti’s departure and Xabi Alonso’s hiring in 2025.

Alonso didn’t last long though, and his replacement, Alvaro Arbeloa, couldn’t deliver major silverware either. Mourinho, who won three titles (LALIGA, Copa del Rey, and Spanish Super Cup) in his first stint in Madrid, now has to bring back glory days immediately.

Puyol knows this poses a threat to Barcelona and McManaman understands that winning the Champions League might be a tall ask, but anything less than a league title could be all she wrote for the Special One. Needless to say, this LALIGA season will be must-watch for world soccer.