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Unbeaten Mourinho’s Real Madrid wrap up La Liga preps ahead of season kickoff
17th August, 2026 07:42 AM
Real Madrid wrapped up an unbeaten preseason after a resounding 3–0 victory over Schalke 04 on Sunday, August 16, 2026, at the Veltins-Arena in Gelsenkirchen. The match served as a clear statement win for José Mourinho’s side ahead of the La Liga season opener.
Kylian Mbappé, Dean Huijsen, and youngster Carlos Espí all found the net in a fixture that saw the Portuguese manager hand debuts to three summer signings.
Former Premier League duo Marc Cucurella and Ibrahima Konaté were among those given their first minutes for the club, each featuring for less than 45 minutes, while Ousmane Diomande also played half an hour in his first appearance for Los Blancos.
The win extended Madrid’s unbeaten preseason cruise, adding to the victories against Deportivo La Coruña and Ferencvárosi TC, and a 2-2 draw against Fiorentina.
Mbappe scores
Making his first appearance of the preseason, Mbappé needed just six minutes to open his account, capitalizing on a poor back pass from Ron Schallenberg to beat Loris Karius in a one-on-one situation.
Madrid’s persistence paid off again in the 20th minute when Huijsen headed home a pinpoint corner from Arda Güler to make it 2–0. The defender nearly added a second in the 33rd minute, but his header was turned away by Karius.
In the second half, Mourinho introduced goalkeeper Andriy Lunin, Eduardo Camavinga, and Carlos Espí. Schalke 04 had an early chance through Timo Becker, but his left-footed strike was comfortably saved by the Ukrainian shot-stopper in the 47th minute.
Debutants on show
Real Madrid quickly regained control and found their third goal ten minutes later, as Raúl Asencio delivered a fine cross from the left wing for Espí to head home from close range. Mourinho then handed debuts to Cucurella and Diomande while also bringing on Jude Bellingham and Dutch defender Denzel Dumfries.
Speaking after the clash, Mourinho described the performance as the ideal preparation ahead of his second stint in La Liga.
“It has been a very good test before starting to compete for real,” he told Real Madrid’s club media.
He also addressed the mounting excitement surrounding his return to the bench after more than a decade away, shifting the focus to the squad’s commitment:
“Fans are excited? The most important thing is that the players are excited. If the players are not excited, it does not matter if I am excited, if the fans are excited, or if the president is excited. But the players are proving that they are excited. You can see it in the little details: there are players who were supposed to return on a certain day but showed up earlier. There is a collective spirit.”
Madrid will kick off their 2026–27 La Liga campaign on Saturday, August 22, 2026, away against RCD Espanyol at the RCDE Stadium
