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Real Madrid News Jose Mourinho played key role in Vinicius’ Real Madrid contract renewal – report Jose Mourinho played a role behind the scenes in Vinicius Junior’s decision to continue at Real Madrid, with the Brazilian now tied to the club until 2032. Earlier in the summer, Vinicius finally ended a prolonged contract saga by agreeing to a new long-term deal with Madrid, the club he has always wanted to represent. While negotiations were complicated by discussions involving his agency, Mourinho made his own contribution to keeping the forward focused on remaining at the Santiago Bernabéu. What’s the story? Alberto Pereiro highlighted the manager’s involvement, as relayed by Defensa Central. “Jose Mourinho played a key role in Vinicius’ contract renewal. “He took him aside, said a couple of silly things to him, and the player quickly realised he wanted to carry on playing for Real Madrid,” he said. The journalist mentions that despite the fact that the negotiations dragged on for months, Vinicius never had any doubts about renewing. “Well, I don’t think he ever had any real doubts about his future, but his agency complicated the negotiations, and Mourinho did his bit to ensure he stayed and to defend him at Cornella over the bullying incident,” said Alberto Pereiro Mourinho has backed Vinicius Mourinho’s relationship with Vinicius has also developed through his public support for the player. The manager defended the Brazilian following the incident at Cornella against Espanyol, reinforcing the sense that Vinicius has the coach’s backing both on and off the pitch. Vinicius is also aware that Mourinho places considerable importance on the collective rather than individual recognition. The coach regards Kylian Mbappe as the player closest to winning the Ballon d’Or, while also believing several other members of the squad can enter the conversation. But individual awards are not Mourinho’s priority. Mourinho’s message to his players has been consistent: their responsibility is to serve Real Madrid rather than build their own individual profiles. The manager wants the squad to understand that success will be judged primarily through the team’s performances and results, with personal accolades coming afterwards. That approach also applies to Vinicius. The Brazilian feels respected by Mourinho and is pleased with the work being done under the new manager. He believes the direction of the team can have a major influence on Madrid’s success. Real Madrid News Real Madrid academy starlet turned down exit offers; tipped to make first-team jump under Mourinho Real Madrid made many Castilla sales over the course of the summer transfer window, with the academy emerging as a major source of income for the club. The sales, in turn, allowed Los Blancos to invest that money towards improving the first-team squad at Jose Mourinho’s disposal. Florentino Perez brought in as many as six players in the market for the first team, with Yan Diomande emerging as their record acquisition. Now, according to AS, one Castilla player who chose patience over an early exit from the club was 19-year-old Joan Martinez. The central defender had several offers to leave the club this summer but decided to stay with Castilla and push for a first-team berth. Joan chooses another year at Castilla There was some uncertainty surrounding the teenager’s future at the club, with Joan starting on the bench behind Oscar Naasei in Castilla’s opening match of the season. However, with the transfer window now shut, the decision is clear. Joan will remain at Castilla for what could be his final season with the reserve team, and expectations around him are significantly higher than before. Last season, he made 36 appearances, scored three goals and accumulated 2,883 minutes. That campaign was also shaped by his recovery from the serious knee injury suffered the previous year. By the end of the season, however, Joan had become an important figure in the Castilla defence. This year, Madrid expect him to make the step up. A season to become the leader The challenge is no longer simply to return to his previous level. Joan is now expected to become one of Castilla’s defensive leaders and show that he can dominate regularly rather than merely have first-team potential. A move elsewhere might have offered senior football, but another year inside Madrid’s structure gives Joan the chance to play consistently while remaining close to Jose Mourinho’s first-team plans. He already featured during pre-season, starting against Fiorentina and Ferencvaros, and Mourinho publicly praised the young defender while also highlighting that he needed to improve his physicality. Joan has since lost some first-team prominence and was not included once La Liga began, but that does not mean the pathway has closed. He is still expected to train with Mourinho’s squad at times and could receive opportunities if injuries, suspensions or rotation create space. Once touted to be the next big thing in Castilla, Joan’s development has been disrupted in recent seasons by an ACL injury. However, with the teenager now fit and opting to stay, the onus is on him to step up and take his game to the next level this season. This could be a make-or-break season for Joan to get his Madrid career on track, and it remains to be seen whether he can make the most of it and give Mourinho a difficult decision to make through the course of the season.