Mourinho reveals how he talked Vinícius into staying at Real Madrid

Some coaches talk tactics, and some coaches talk feelings. Jose Mourinho did both during his appearance on El Chiringuito, but it was the emotional side that stood out when he was asked to explain how he convinced Vinicius Junior not to pack his bags for Arsenal this summer.

The story, as Mourinho told it, sounds less like a coach's speech and more like a heart to heart in the locker room. By his account, it only took a few lines for the Brazilian to understand what he was about to leave behind. "Vinicius has fallen in love with Real Madrid. All I told him was: 'Vini, where do you want to go? You've only ever been in Brazil, and you only know Real Madrid... You only really know Real Madrid once you leave. When you leave, that's when you understand what Real Madrid is. Don't go. It's not worth it,'" the coach said.

I think what he's felt in terms of the group's growth, in the way we've been working and improving, has given him a really important feeling. This is another one who's a pleasure to watch work. We have a lot of quality.Jose Mourinho

But the Vinicius chapter didn't end there. Mourinho also stepped in to defend him from something that keeps repeating match after match: jeers from rival stadiums, often from fans with no real history with the player at all. The coach was blunt about referees and about how the winger is treated on the field.

The other day, when they didn't call a penalty as clear as the one at the Bernabeu, he was already in the middle of the pitch fighting for it, and he knows I'll be there with him. I think people need to learn how to treat him, and that goes for referees too. Vinicius is a player like any other, you can't blow a penalty if you're Pedrerol... and not blow it because it's Vinicius.Jose Mourinho

Why do they jeer him for no reason?

That's where the most interesting part of the interview came in. Mourinho didn't deny that Vinicius sometimes gets himself into trouble in front of rival supporters during celebrations. But he rightly asked why the player gets booed even in stadiums where he's never played and has no prior friction with the local fans. He gave concrete examples: A Coruna, Schalke. Places where, in his view, there's no real reason for hostility toward the Brazilian beyond what he represents.

"But what sense does it make for a stadium to jeer one of the best players in the world when you have nothing against him? You go play a friendly in A Coruna or against Schalke, and I don't think Vinicius has ever played against Schalke or Depor before. Why boo him the first time he touches the ball? We need to try to find some common ground, because watching him play is a privilege," the Portuguese coach added.

The interview also touched on the transfer market and how Real Madrid's attack has taken shape following the arrival of Yan Diomande, brought in this summer to add depth on that flank. Asked whether he'd like to have Lamine Yamal, Barcelona's rising star, in his squad, Mourinho was direct: he wouldn't swap out any of his own players. "I wouldn't make room for anyone right now. Right now these are mine, and mine are the best," he replied, while still acknowledging the level of the young Barca winger, a European and world champion at just 19 years old.

On Barcelona, the current league leaders and Real Madrid's eternal rival, Mourinho didn't hold back praise for the work of Hansi Flick and the sporting management led by Deco. A show of respect that, coming from him, sounds less like forced diplomacy and more like one professional recognizing another.