José Mourinho's return to Real Madrid is already being defined by who is not there. He wants the squad back in time for pre-season, but he will start with only 13 available players at Valdebebas. The club begin pre-season on 13 July, while 12 more players are still involved at the World Cup.

Mourinho's pre-season problem

The blunt line came straight from Mourinho: "You want the truth? I want the Real Madrid players to lose and go on vacation. Because I want the lads back for pre-season". It is a sharp way of saying the obvious, this is not a normal start to a summer.

The scale of the delay is awkward enough. Real Madrid have 29 first-team players under contract, yet only 13 are due on day one. The rest are either away with World Cup squads or not guaranteed to be in the group, and that means Mourinho is beginning his spell with a partial squad rather than the full reset he clearly wants.

That is before the timetable gets even messier. The World Cup final is on 19 July, and players who reach it would not be back until around 10 August. For a new manager trying to set standards early, that is a long wait.

Who is there, and who is still missing

The names available from day one include Trent Alexander-Arnold, Andriy Lunin, Álvaro Carreras, Dean Huijsen, Ferland Mendy, Éder Militão and Rodrygo. Six players are not guaranteed, among them Eduardo Camavinga, Gonzalo García, Raúl Asencio, Fran García, Franco Mastantuono and Thiago Pitarch.

There is also some room for movement in the squad picture, with César Palacios expected to take part in first-team pre-season this summer. Mourinho has not waited for training to begin before pushing deeper into the club either, requesting detailed reports on the youth academy and medical department. First-team doctor Manuel Arroyo has already left after arriving last year from Granada.

The football point is simple enough. Mourinho does not just want a fit squad, he wants the full group together quickly so he can judge it properly. Starting with 13 players makes that harder, and it gives his return a very practical first problem before any tactical one.

Written by Daniel Hartley with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 2 outlets. How we work →