The secrets of Mourinho's four revolutions: how he turned Real Madrid into an unstoppable winning machine

Eight consecutive victories across all competitions, a team working as a single unit, and a collective spirit that Real Madrid had not known for years. Behind this remarkable transformation stands one man, and four decisions, that turned the Spanish club's course completely upside down.

On his Cope radio programme "El Tertulión", renowned journalist Manolo Lama sat alongside Juanma Castaño and laid out the real reasons behind Real Madrid's current winning run. The success was no accident, he insisted. It came from "coach José Mourinho taking four correct decisions", which Lama said he had "mastered completely".

The first decision: Valverde, the full-back who did not like it

First on the list, according to Lama, was playing Fede Valverde at right-back. The Portuguese coach proved decisive here, "convincing" the Uruguayan to accept the new role despite Valverde's previous admissions that he dislikes the position.

Mourinho, with his well-known powers of persuasion, turned what looked like a punishment into a tactical weapon. Valverde brought defensive balance, physical strength and attacking surges from the back, becoming one of the side's most important cards in the big matches. The great coach, as Lama sees it, is the one who spots in a player what the player cannot see in his own mirror.

The second decision: two talents that do not part

Decision number two was "fielding two talented players together, Bernardo Silva and Arda Güler", a move Lama called a turning point in the team's attacking shape.

With the pair in tandem, Real Madrid suddenly had two creative minds in midfield, able to make the difference in the final third, link the lines smoothly and give the side greater control over the rhythm of a game. They had previously struggled for solutions against defensively compact opponents.

The third decision: a successful start with Vinícius

For his third point, Manolo Lama highlighted a "successful start" for the Portuguese coach with Vinícius Júnior, the Brazilian star currently serving a four-match suspension after his sending-off against Villarreal.

The ban robbed the team of its brightest star in recent weeks. Even so, the way Mourinho handled Vinícius from day one, offering trust and freedom alongside collective commitment, helped the player hit his best level and grow more mature in dealing with pressure and provocation.

The fourth decision: the greatest achievement

For Lama, though, the fourth key is "the most important". He rates it as Mourinho's standout achievement, the very thing that sets the Portuguese apart from any other coach.

The journalist stressed that Mourinho: "convinced ten players in the team of the necessity of collective work for the team to succeed, and that it is fine if the striker does not run, but the other ten players must run".

Expanding on the idea, Lama called this the coach's real achievement. He pinpointed the difference it makes to the collective effort, explaining that "it is not the same if one player does not run in the match as if two players do not run", a balance Real Madrid have struck this season.

A team working in harmony

Those four decisions turned Real Madrid from a group of stars into a team in harmony, where every player knows his role and runs for his team-mate.

Mourinho changed more than the line-up. He changed the mentality. He convinced the stars to sacrifice, convinced the substitutes they are essential, and convinced everyone that winning comes not from a single player but from ten men running as one. If this continues, eight straight victories may be just the beginning of a bigger story Mourinho is writing in Madrid.