Raul Asencio on Mourinho's Impact at Real Madrid

Raul Asencio leans into the noise of the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix and talks about something even louder: the new Real Madrid taking shape under Jose Mourinho.

Engines scream around Montmelo, but the centre-back’s mind is already at the Santiago Bernabeu. A new project. A familiar face. And, possibly, a very big signing.

Mourinho’s return lights a fire

Asencio doesn’t hide it: Mourinho’s comeback has hit a nerve with a generation that grew up watching his first spell transform Madrid.

“I was little and I saw it,” he recalled to ElDesmarque, remembering how the Portuguese coach dragged the club into a new level of competitiveness, intensity and edge. That Madrid snarled. It hunted. It refused to back down.

Those traits, Asencio insists, are the ones he wants to live by now.

“Now, with Mourinho’s new project, I think it’s very exciting and I’m really looking forward to starting,” he said, the anticipation clear. For a defender trying to cement his place, there are worse mentors than a coach who built title-winning teams on aggression and structure.

Mourinho’s mentality, Asencio believes, arrives at exactly the right time. Barcelona have ruled La Liga for two straight seasons. Madrid are tired of watching.

“I’m really excited to start with him at the helm. Yes, of course. He set the record, let’s go for it.”

That “record” is the standard Mourinho set in his first stint: points, goals, titles, a relentless rhythm. Asencio’s message is simple — match it, or beat it.

Bernardo Silva on the horizon

While cars flash past in Catalunya, another storyline gathers speed in the Spanish capital: Bernardo Silva to Real Madrid.

Nothing is official yet, but the dressing room is already talking. Asencio, a product of the academy, doesn’t bother playing it down.

“He’s very, very good, it would be a real boost for the team,” he said, offering the kind of straightforward praise that follows Bernardo wherever he goes.

The Portuguese international would bring something different: control between the lines, vision, experience at the very top of the European game. For a squad being reshaped under Mourinho, that profile fits neatly.

Asencio’s stance is clear. No ego, no hesitation.

“We’ll welcome anyone that comes with open arms and we’re sure that the project being built is incredible.”

The word “project” can feel empty in football. Not here. Not when a coach like Mourinho walks back through the door and players immediately start talking about standards, records, and titles.

Watching La Roja from the outside

There is one stage Asencio won’t be stepping onto this summer: the FIFA World Cup 2026 with Spain.

He has been in Luis de la Fuente’s plans before, called up but never quite established. This time, he watches from afar, not from the dressing room.

That doesn’t cool his feelings for La Roja.

“From here, as a Spaniard and as an admirer, I support the team, I wish them the best, that they reach the final and can win and celebrate together,” he said.

Spain open their campaign against tournament newcomers Cape Verde, a fixture Asencio expects them to handle without drama. For him, it’s a chance to support, not compete. To dream as a fan, while fighting as a professional for the next call-up.

So his summer is split in two: eyes on Spain, mind on Madrid.

On one side, a national team chasing another star on the shirt. On the other, a club bracing itself for Mourinho’s second era, possible marquee arrivals like Bernardo Silva, and the old demand that never changes at the Bernabeu.

Win. And then win again.