Jose Mourinho’s second spell as Real Madrid manager got off to a winning start as Carlos Espi scored a dramatic 90th-minute winner to secure a 2-1 victory at Espanyol.
Real Madrid took the lead in the ninth minute when England midfielder Jude Bellingham headed in Arda Guler’s free-kick.
Espanyol responded in the 30th minute, with summer signing Cala tapping in Javi Hernandez’s cut-back at the far post to make it 1-1.
Real Madrid controlled much of the match and came close to taking the lead again on several occasions. Bellingham saw a powerful header pushed onto the bar by Espanyol goalkeeper Marko Dmitrovic, while Federico Valverde’s curling effort struck the base of the post.
Mourinho then turned to his bench, bringing on several new signings and young talents, including Espi, Marc Cucurella, Yan Diomande and England full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold.
The changes eventually paid off in the final minute.
Diomande found Kylian Mbappe inside the box before the ball fell to Espi, who calmly finished to give Real Madrid all three points.
Espi joined Real from Levante for £21m, while Diomande arrived from RB Leipzig in a deal worth up to £120m, making him the club’s record signing.
The victory will be a major boost for Mourinho, who returned to Real Madrid in July on a three-year contract. He also handed competitive debuts to new signings Denzel Dumfries, Ibrahima Konate and Bernardo Silva.
Mourinho’s first spell at Real Madrid began in 2010 and lasted three seasons. During that period, he won La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup.
The 63-year-old Portuguese manager has now won 26 major trophies during his career, including three Premier League titles with Chelsea and Champions League triumphs with Porto and Inter Milan.
Real Madrid have gone two seasons without winning a major trophy. The club parted ways with Xabi Alonso in January, before Alvaro Arbeloa took charge for the remainder of the campaign on an interim basis.
Mourinho will now hope his winning return marks the start of a successful new era at the Spanish giants.
