Catalan newspapers slam Mourinho: tonnes of noise, little football

Is she right?

José Mourinho's comments against the referee following Real Madrid's 2-1 defeat to Atlético Madrid in the capital derby sparked widespread anger in the Catalan press, which attacked the Portuguese coach's style and questioned the value of his return to the helm of the royal club.

The newspaper "Sport" ran the phrase "Stop harassing referees" across its front page, a direct shot at Mourinho's rhetoric after he laid into referee Miguel Ángel Ortiz Arias.

"Sport" went after what it called the noise surrounding Mourinho, arguing that the coach and his staff have become better at preparing press conferences than matches. Talk of the coach, it said, overshadowed the football for 24 hours after the derby.

That noise, the paper pointed out, can no longer hide Real Madrid's problems. If anything, it hands their rivals extra room to build momentum.

Sharp criticism of Real Madrid's performance

"Mundo Deportivo", for its part, tore into Real Madrid's style of play under Mourinho, and the first-half display in particular. The team looked slow and sluggish, short of attacking vitality and creating precious little.

Real Madrid played the second half a man down and looked different, the paper added, but lacked spirit, enthusiasm and the desire to win. There was no clear attacking intent either.

Linking that picture to why the club chose Mourinho in the first place, "Mundo Deportivo" recalled that the Portuguese was meant to restore discipline and hand Kylian Mbappé and Vinícius Júnior roles with more collective commitment.

A dramatic series

Over at "Sport", the verdict on Mourinho's second tenure has already begun, following his return to the club he led between 2010 and 2013.

He came back to Madrid, the paper said, promising a revolution. So far, by its description, he has managed only to turn the club into "another dramatic series".

The comparison with Pep Guardiola followed, the paper highlighting how differently the two coaches' paths have run. Mourinho returns to Real Madrid after recent spells marked by clashes. Guardiola takes a break after years of work and success.

With the criticism rumbling on after the derby defeat, the Catalan press believes Mourinho's second start at Real Madrid has yet to deliver the change everyone expected. The question marks over the new project inside the Santiago Bernabéu keep growing.