Real Madrid snatch late win at Espanyol on Mourinho's return

Jose Mourinho began his second tenure as Real Madrid manager with a narrow 2-1 victory over Espanyol. New signing Carlos Espi scored the winning goal in the final minute of the match.
Why it matters
Real Madrid is one of the world's most prominent football clubs, and Mourinho's return is a major development in European sports.
Jose Mourinho's second spell in charge of Real Madrid began with a last-gasp 2-1 victory at Espanyol in La Liga on Saturday, with substitute Carlos Espi pouncing in the 90th minute to grab the winner.
Jude Bellingham opened the scoring in Los Blancos' opening fixture of the season, and new signing Espi secured the points at the death after Alex Calatrava had levelled against Mourinho's star-studded team.
"I think that we deserved to win but that Espanyol didn't deserve to lose," Mourinho told reporters.
"They didn't have any players at the World Cup and have been working together for a long time, and you could see that."
Back in charge of Madrid 13 years after leaving, Portuguese veteran Mourinho must bring the dressing room under control after the chaos of last season, and end Spanish champions Barcelona 's domestic dominance.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in