Coach of the Matchday 8: José Mourinho and Real Madrid's 1-0 win over Villarreal

RutaMister analysis: we examine three of José Mourinho's decisions using the cited match report. We look at the XI with Diomande, the Carreras and Trent changes, and the management of the game with ten men after the red card. The outcomes described are observable; tactical intentions are editorial interpretations, not confirmed instructions from the coaching staff.

1. Diomande starts instead of Vinícius

Problem: someone had to take the left side of the attack; one report places Diomande there. Observed decision: Mourinho started Yan Diomande, with Vinícius Jr. outside the XI. Effect: in the 62nd minute, Diomande scored the 1-0, his first goal for Real Madrid, from a Valverde pass. The report does not say why Vinícius did not start, so the choice alone does not show Mourinho's reasoning.

2. Carreras off at half-time and Trent off in the 52nd

Problem: at 0-0, the team had not found the goal in the first half. Observed decision: in the 46th minute Cucurella replaced Carreras; in the 52nd, Vinícius came on for Trent Alexander-Arnold. Effect: Diomande's goal came ten minutes after Vinícius entered. The report does not credit the goal to those changes, so the timing alone does not prove a cause.

3. Managing the 1-0 with ten men after the 73rd-minute red

Problem: Vinícius was sent off with a straight red for pulling Saliba's hair, after a VAR review. A goal that would have made it 2-0 was also disallowed. Real Madrid had to protect the lead a man down for more than twenty minutes. Observed decision: Mourinho brought on Camavinga for Arda Güler in the 77th and Dumfries for Diomande in the 86th. Effect: the score did not change until the end. The report does not detail Villarreal's chances in that spell, so we cannot measure how much the substitutions mattered.

Real Madrid beat Villarreal 1-0 at the Bernabéu with an XI that did not include Vinícius. Courtois started in goal. Mourinho set up in a 4-2-3-1. Carreras, Rüdiger, Konaté and Trent Alexander-Arnold formed the back four. Tchouaméni and Valverde were the double pivot. Diomande, Bellingham and Arda Güler played behind Mbappé.

The first half had no goals and two bookings. Villarreal's Renato Veiga was booked in the 10th minute. Bellingham was booked in the 19th. In the 46th, Cucurella came on for Carreras.

Vinícius came on in the 52nd for Trent Alexander-Arnold. Villarreal answered in the 56th with a double change: Saliba and Carlos Romero for Santi Comesaña and Foyth. It was still 0-0.

Diomande broke the deadlock in the 62nd minute. He received a pass from Valverde and scored his first goal for Real Madrid. The goal was flagged offside and then validated by VAR.

Villarreal changed their bench again in the 67th. Mikautadze and Gerard Moreno replaced Cardona and Ilias Akhomach. Real Madrid still led 1-0.

Vinícius's red card changed the closing stages. In the 73rd, referee Isidro Díaz de Mera sent him off for pulling Saliba's hair, after a VAR review. A Real Madrid goal that would have made it 2-0 was also disallowed.

Playing with ten, Real Madrid closed out the game through substitutions and bookings. Camavinga replaced Arda Güler in the 77th and Dumfries replaced Diomande in the 86th. Konaté, Rüdiger, Tchouaméni and Mbappé were booked between the 81st and 94th minutes. Mourinho was also booked for protesting, at an unconfirmed minute.

Mourinho did not speak to the press after the match. That is why this analysis includes no quotes from the coach, only facts from the match report.

Task proposed by RutaMister, inspired by the analysis. It is not an exercise attributed to José Mourinho. Goal: the player coming off the bench knows what is asked of him in his first minute and carries it out.

• Players: 7 v 7 with goalkeepers, plus two substitutes per team waiting outside the pitch.
• Space: 40x30 metres, with two goals.
• Duration: 4 blocks of 5 minutes, with 1 minute of rest between blocks.
• Organisation: at minute 3 of each block, the coach sends a substitute on for a teammate.
• Rule: the player coming on gets a one-sentence mission before stepping on the pitch, for example attacking the space behind the full-back.
• Cue: the teammate coming off tells the newcomer one thing he has seen about the opponent.

Coach's correction: "You come on with a mission, not to touch the ball: complete it and then play."

What to watch: whether the substitute completes the mission in the first two minutes and whether the team's rhythm changes when he enters.

The coaches of the matchday from the previous weeks, each with its analysis and its grassroots task:

• Matchday 7: Martín Anselmi and Elche's 1-3 win at Espanyol
• Matchday 6: Manuel Pellegrini and Real Betis's 1-0 win over Getafe
• Matchday 5: José Alberto López and Racing de Santander's 2-1 win over Alavés
• Matchday 4: Antonio Hidalgo and Deportivo's 2-3 win at Villarreal