Mourinho's dressing‑room crisis deepens as Mbappe defies orders
On a sun‑lit Sunday in the Swiss Alps, Kylian Mbappe posted a smiling video of himself cycling through a picturesque valley, while back in Madrid Jose Mourinho watched the clip with evident displeasure, aware that the French striker’s off‑field choices were adding fuel to an already frosty dressing‑room atmosphere.
Dressing‑room tensions persist
Since returning in the summer, Mourinho has been unable to thaw the ‘icy’ mood that pervades Real Madrid’s locker room, reports Spanish radio station Cadena Ser. The situation has not improved and the atmosphere remains tense as the club heads into a crucial month of October. The squad previously struggled to get along with former players‑turned‑coaches Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa during their last outing, highlighting a pattern of discord beyond the current manager’s tenure. In May, midfielders Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni were involved in a physical altercation, a clash that Anton Meana described as a grave incident, though the two players involved were not named. Mbappe’s recent ‘affair’ centres on his recovery from a left‑knee tendon injury that forced him to withdraw from France’s squad after scoring the winner against Turkey in the opening game of the international break, according to the French Football Federation. He returned to training on a Wednesday and is expected to be fit for Real’s return to action this weekend, yet before his comeback he was spotted at a Paris nightclub with partner Ester Exposito and later on a cycling trip in the Swiss Alps, actions that Mourinho publicly condemned. Mourinho, speaking last month, warned that a footballer is a professional twenty‑four hours a day and cannot indulge in activities such as skiing or cycling, warning that a fall could cost three matches or even cause a broken leg. After Mbappe’s return to the Bernabéu, Mourinho reportedly gave the striker a dressing‑down, urging him to be more subtle with his off‑pitch antics, a sentiment echoed by Pablo Polo, who said Mourinho did not appreciate how Mbappe managed his recovery and his late arrival on Monday after training. Under Mourinho, Real have had a mixed start to the 2025‑26 campaign, winning five of their first seven LaLiga games but finding themselves six points adrift of Barcelona. The side return to action on Saturday with a home fixture against Villarreal before travelling to Roma for a Champions League clash next Wednesday.