What happened in Real Madrid’s defense during the clash with Real Sociedad was not simply an enforced second-half substitution. Instead, it offered a clear indication of what Jose Mourinho may have in mind regarding the shape he wants his team to adopt in the coming period.
While several players were waiting for their opportunity to prove themselves, the outlines of a new defensive four began to emerge — a group that offers Mourinho a different approach at the back and gives him the tools needed to implement his ideas of pressing and defending higher up the pitch.
Mourinho Identifies Real Madrid’s Defensive Four
According to reports from AS, the outlines of Jose Mourinho’s preferred defensive line began to emerge during Real Madrid’s La Liga meeting with Real Sociedad.
In the 35th minute, Mourinho called for greater concentration from his players after Sergio Gomez came close to scoring with a powerful effort, following an earlier save from Thibaut Courtois to deny Mikel Oyarzabal in the 10th minute.
During that period, Mourinho sent five players to warm up with fitness coach Antonio Pintus: Marc Cucurella, Eduardo Camavinga, Brahim Diaz, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Asensio.
The Portuguese coach explained his decision, saying: “I always do it in the 35th minute. I like everyone to be inside during the break because I have instructions for everyone.”
With the score still level at the start of the second half, Mourinho brought on Marc Cucurella for Alvaro Carreras, allowing the Spanish full-back to make his first appearance in a Real Madrid shirt at the Santiago Bernabeu.
The change appeared to reveal the defensive structure the Real Madrid coaching staff is leaning towards. Denzel Dumfries operated at right-back, while Cucurella occupied the left side, with Ibrahima Konate playing as the right-sided centre-back alongside Dean Huijsen on the left.
Mourinho had explained that Carreras was substituted after receiving a yellow card in the 10th minute following a challenge on Takefusa Kubo.
According to the reports, this back four now appears to be the leading option to anchor Real Madrid’s defense in key matches during the season, although Antonio Rudiger could replace either Konate or Huijsen before Eder Militao returns.
This defensive structure gives Mourinho a combination of strength, pace and the ability to defend in advanced areas. Dumfries and Cucurella can push forward, allowing Real Madrid to maintain a higher defensive line and press further up the pitch while creating more space for the midfield and attacking players to execute Mourinho’s pressing approach.
The numbers from the Real Sociedad match also support the idea. Dumfries ranked fifth for passes in the final third with 15, while Huijsen led the passing statistics after completing 69 of his 72 passes, giving him a 95.8 percent completion rate.
Konate and Cucurella topped the successful tackles list with two each, while Huijsen and Carreras recovered four balls apiece. Collectively, Real Madrid’s defenders recovered 15 balls, including seven inside Real Sociedad’s half.
Defensively, Real Madrid allowed only three shots on Courtois’ goal, the same number they faced against Espanyol.
However, Mourinho will not simply rely on what happened in one match, particularly given his history of building defensively solid teams. During the 2010-11 season with Real Madrid, his side kept 30 clean sheets in 59 matches, including 16 in La Liga, eight in the Champions League and six in the Copa del Rey.
The understanding between the members of the new defensive line is expected to improve over the coming weeks, with matches against Malaga and Real Betis ahead, followed by the start of the Champions League campaign, before fixtures against Rayo Vallecano and Elche and eventually the Madrid derby against Atletico Madrid at the Metropolitano.
The outlines of Real Madrid’s new “White Wall” are therefore becoming increasingly clear, with Mourinho beginning to settle on a defensive four capable of combining solidity at the back with an aggressive pressing approach, although the real test will come against the strongest opponents of the season.