Mourinho’s reunion with Inter gives Real Madrid’s new era its first real test

When Mourinho left Inter for Madrid in the summer of 2010, he was at the peak of his career. He had just led Inter to a historic treble, winning Serie A on the final weekend, lifting the Coppa Italia and beating Bayern Munich 2-0 in the Champions League final at the Santiago Bernabeu.

It was Inter’s first European Cup since 1965 and the first treble by an Italian club.

A day after that final, Mourinho said it could be his last game in charge of Inter. Within a week, Real Madrid had confirmed him as their new manager.

Sixteen years on, Mourinho begins another European campaign at the Bernabeu against the club he took to the top of Europe.

The meeting comes at an awkward moment for both

Inter have reached two Champions League finals in recent years, losing to Manchester City in 2023 before Paris Saint-Germain beat them heavily in the 2025 final. They have come close, but have not returned to the level of Mourinho’s 2010 side.

Mourinho has not won the Champions League since that night in Madrid either. He could not take Real beyond the semi-finals during his first spell, then spent much of the next decade outside Europe’s top tier.

He won the Europa League with Manchester United in 2017 and the Conference League with Roma in 2022. Those trophies added to his record, but they were not the Champions League.

Real Madrid brought him back after two trophyless seasons. Florentino Perez wants him to restore the club’s place at the top of Europe.

“The attraction of Real Madrid for me was the history of the club, the failures in recent years and their expectation to win,” he said in 2010.

During his first spell, Mourinho helped end Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona dominance in Spain. But he did not deliver La Decima, Real’s long-awaited 10th European Cup.

Carlo Ancelotti did that after Mourinho left, then added two more Champions Leagues across his two spells. Zinedine Zidane won three in a row. Real collected six European Cups in 10 years.

Mourinho believes his work helped lay part of the foundation.

“I’m very happy that my work had some positive effect, but those titles belong to Carlo, Zidane, the players and the fans,” he said.

Real’s grip on the competition has loosened over the last two seasons. Arsenal knocked them out in the quarter-finals in 2025, then Bayern Munich eliminated them in the last 16 last season.

Mourinho’s job is clear: prove that he and Real Madrid can again dominate Europe’s elite and stop Luis Enrique’s PSG from making it three Champions League titles in a row.

“Finishing a season without a trophy at Real Madrid is not a successful season,” Mourinho said in August.

His second spell started with three wins from three, but Friday’s 1-0 defeat to Real Betis brought the first setback.

Inter at the Bernabeu is an early chance to respond. It also asks the biggest question of Mourinho’s return so far: can he bring Real Madrid back to where both he and Inter once stood together?