Sid Lowe sees Mourinho's knee‑slide spark Real Madrid at Camp Nou

On Sunday night at the Camp Nou, José Mourinho celebrated Real Madrid’s three points with a trademark knee‑slide after Kylian Mbappé’s second goal clinched the clásico. The 63‑year‑old manager had watched the first strike from the bench’s shadow before leaping into the light as time ran out.

Mourinho’s jubilant knee‑slide

Mourinho threw himself onto the grass, his trousers’ knees slick with mud like a schoolboy’s. When Kylian Mbappé scored the first goal, Mourinho remained seated, watching intently. He stuck his tongue out, pumped his fists and declared he loves it when a plan comes together.

To his right the bench emptied as substitutes sprinted towards the south‑west corner, dodging bottles hurled from the far end. A small group of Madrid supporters in the glass‑enclosed section went mad, while roughly a thousand phones lit up the main stand.

Six hundred kilometres west in Boadilla, Thibaut Courtois watched the action from his sofa, wrapped in a blanket and nursing a cup of Lemsip. He had awoken with flu that morning and was forced to miss the biggest game.

Mourinho had already delivered the infamous “por quê?” printout and a press‑conference no‑show in under 100 days, a stunt that raised eyebrows across Europe.

Now, back at the venue where his European triumphs began, the manager’s knee‑slide symbolised a fresh start for Real Madrid. Sid Lowe noted the scene as a vivid statement of Mourinho’s renewed ambition.