‘I risked everything!’ – Jose Mourinho reveals ‘could have lost’ gamble as Carlos Espi saves Real Madrid in Elche thriller

While the late victory sparked celebrations, Mourinho was quick to identify a glaring issue with his team’s inability to put the match out of sight earlier. He noted that the squad lacked the clinical edge required to kill off the fixture.

“In games that seem like they’re done, we have three, four, five chances to kill it, and we don’t,” the Real Madrid boss stated. “We didn’t score, we didn’t finish it with the 3 or 4-0. When it seems easy, you leave things like that, away from home at these stadiums.”

Despite the frustration, he found a silver lining in the squad’s resilience. “They get a goal and it’s an open game. The good thing is that in difficulty, the team reacts and wins,” Mourinho concluded, before joking: “The good thing is that nobody gets bored in Real Madrid games. They’re really fun!”