Signing Rodri would have been "the cherry on top" for Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho, but he does not believe the midfielder's move to Barcelona puts his side at a disadvantage in the LaLiga title race.

Madrid open their first campaign under Mourinho since 2012-13 with a trip to Espanyol on Saturday, having brought 'The Special One' back for a second stint in the Spanish capital.

Between 2010 and 2013, Mourinho led Madrid to one LaLiga title, one Copa del Rey and one Supercopa de Espana, with their 2011-12 league success coming with a tally of 100 points – still the joint-competition record.

And ahead of Mourinho's return, Madrid have strengthened their ranks with the additions of Bernardo Silva, Marc Cucurella, Denzel Dumfries, Yan Diomande, Ibrahima Konate and Carlos Espi.

They missed out on 2024 Ballon d'Or winner Rodri, though, with Spain's World Cup Golden Ball recipient joining Barcelona from Manchester City in a huge €76.5m deal.

But in his pre-match press conference ahead of visiting Espanyol, Mourinho said Madrid saw an opportunity to pursue Rodri, rather than viewing the signing as a necessity. 

"I don't think we have a deficit," Mourinho said when asked about Rodri's move to Barca. "Then you can ask, 'If you don't have a deficit, why did you want to sign Rodri?'

"He would have been the cherry on top, he's a great player, he's a player with great experience, with great status. 

"If we could have had him, we would have had him and we would have improved. But when you have [Aurelien] Tchouameni, [Eduardo] Camavinga, [Federico] Valverde, Bernardo, Arda [Guler] … it's not that we have a problem or that we needed to go for another player."

Many of Madrid's star players – including Kylian Mbappe, Jude Bellingham and Cucurella – have had shortened pre-seasons after going deep at the World Cup.

 Our squad for the match!
 @RCDEspanyol_EN pic.twitter.com/9aaGwdFdwQ

— Real Madrid C.F.  (@realmadriden) August 21, 2026

But Mourinho would give nothing away when asked about his starting lineup for the game, saying: "The first XI? Let's see which of you has the best contacts. The players already know who is playing. I'm not someone who hides things.

"Maybe in a couple of hours your information will arrive, but I'm not going to tell you. To answer your question about whether I have an ideal XI – I don't, or I don't want to have one.

"It's another season, another game. Some players have had 36 training sessions and six games, others five training sessions and only part of a game. 

"There are exceptional players and an exceptional staff, and I've been able to prepare differentiated work. I'm very happy with the situation."

Mourinho has not lost any of his six games against Espanyol in LaLiga (W4 D2) – that is the joint-most matches he has overseen against any team in the competition without ever losing (also six against five other teams).

Madrid are playing their opening game a week later than most sides in LaLiga, with Espanyol already having three points on the board after a 3-0 victory over Levante.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Espanyol – Roberto Fernandez

Fernandez has scored three goals in his last two LaLiga matches, one more than he managed in his previous 22 games in the competition.

That includes his second brace in the top flight, against Levante last weekend, so he will enter this game in high spirits. 

Real Madrid – Vinicius Junior

Vinicius has scored five goals in 11 LaLiga appearances against Espanyol, with three of those coming in his six league visits to the RCDE Stadium.

The Brazilian has not scored more goals at any other away ground in the Spanish top flight (also three at three other venues), and he will be desperate to make a scoring start to Madrid's new era.

 @ViniJr
 @FedeeValverde pic.twitter.com/bPcyGA1t4a

— Real Madrid C.F.  (@realmadriden) August 21, 2026

MATCH PREDICTION – REAL MADRID WIN

Real Madrid have not lost on the opening matchday in any of the last 17 LaLiga seasons (W12 D5), since a 2-1 defeat against Deportivo de A Coruna in August 2008.

This is the best unbeaten run on the opening matchday by any team in the competition's history.

In addition, Los Blancos have won 110 of their 180 LaLiga meetings with Espanyol (D33 L37), a record for the most wins by one team against another in the league's history.

Espanyol have lost 11 of their 15 LaLiga games at the RCDE Stadium against Madrid (W3 D1), their most such defeats against any team in the competition.

Saturday's hosts have won three of their last four LaLiga games (D1), after failing to win any of their previous 18 in the competition (D6 L12), and they could now equal their longest unbeaten run in LaLiga under manager Manolo Gonzalez (five games on three occasions).

Espanyol are unlikely to make things easy, but Madrid are clear favourites with the talent in their ranks and should make a winning start.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Espanyol – 15.6%

Real Madrid – 62.4%

Draw – 22%