Jose Mourinho walked back into the Santiago Bernabeu and left with the roar he came for.
Thirteen years after his last home game in charge, the Portuguese watched Real Madrid explode into life in the second half to crush Real Sociedad 4-1, with Kylian Mbappe stealing the show with a ruthless hat-trick.
It was ugly before it was beautiful. LaLiga’s return to the Bernabeu began with whistles, not music. Madrid looked heavy-legged, careless, and were punished when Luka Sucic cancelled out Mbappe’s 40th-minute opener. The stands grew restless.
Boos turn into belief
Mourinho did not flinch.
“There’s always a sense of justice in the boos and the applause,” he said afterward. “The odd boo now and then doesn’t do anyone any harm – it helps you grow.
“We all know the Santiago Bernabeu and just how demanding the fans are there, and I’m very pleased with how my players responded under pressure and put in a great second half, in which we could even have scored more goals.”
He threw on Marc Cucurella at halftime and lit a fuse. The Bernabeu, so demanding and so quick to judge, demanded a reaction. They got one.
Madrid came out transformed. Vinicius Jr and Mbappe ran like men with something to prove, stretching Sociedad until the defence cracked.
Mbappe crowns Mourinho’s return
The turning point was pure chemistry. On the hour, Mbappe and Jude Bellingham played a slick one-two that left the Frenchman alone to slot home. Eight minutes later, Bellingham’s pressing created Vinicius’ tap-in.
Mbappe wasn’t finished. In the 80th minute he latched onto a clever Vinicius pass and lifted a cool chip over Alex Remiro to complete his treble.
From jeers to a standing ovation in 45 minutes. For Mourinho, it was the perfect script for a homecoming: pressure, response, and a statement win to start the season.
