Mourinho Stunned As Betis Hand Madrid First Defeat

Betis end Mourinho’s perfect start

Real Betis handed José Mourinho his first La Liga defeat since returning to Real Madrid, winning 1-0 at the 72,000-capacity Estadio La Cartuja in Seville.

Substitute Republic of Ireland striker Troy Parrott scored in the 81st minute to put Betis ahead. A dramatic finale saw Carlos Espí have a spectacular equaliser disallowed for offside before Kylian Mbappé missed an injury-time penalty for Madrid.

Mourinho said he could not explain the loss despite feeling his side had controlled the match. The result ends Madrid’s three-game winning start to Mourinho’s second spell and marks their first defeat in one of their opening four league games since 2014-15.

Mourinho: “I don’t know why we lost” Mourinho told reporters he had no clear justification for the defeat.

“Sometimes you lose and you don’t know why,” he said. “Sometimes you lose and you don’t know how to explain it. We were very dominant, focused, we controlled absolutely everything, with a lot of attacking play, and a lot of chances.”

When asked about the disallowed goal and the penalty, Mourinho said he had not reviewed the incidents. “I might change my mind watching the game tomorrow, but my feeling from the bench is that I don’t know why we lost. I can’t find the justification, because the team played very well in every aspect.”

Madrid dominate but come up short

Madrid finished with eight shots on target and an expected goals (xG) of 3.16 but left Seville without points.

Parrott, who made his only two Premier League appearances for Tottenham under Mourinho in 2019-20, delivered the decisive blow against his former manager. Betis defended resolutely after taking the lead and held on for a famous victory.

Title race implications

The defeat opens the door for Barcelona to move three points clear at the top of La Liga.

Barcelona can overtake Madrid by beating Valencia on Sunday. For Mourinho, the focus now turns to regrouping quickly and ensuring this setback does not become a pattern as the season progresses.