Jose Mourinho skips press conference after Real Madrid’s win over Villarreal

Jose Mourinho declined to attend the post-match press conference after Real Madrid’s 1-0 victory over Villarreal in La Liga.

The Portuguese manager did not appear before the media after the sixth-round fixture, according to Spanish newspaper Marca, which said no reason had been given for his decision.

Mourinho’s absence came after a very different reaction to Real Madrid’s previous match against Atletico Madrid. He attended that news conference and launched a strong criticism of the referee following the Madrid derby.

The match against Villarreal produced a dramatic turn of events after Vinicius Junior was introduced as a substitute in the 52nd minute, replacing Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Vinicius appeared to score Real Madrid’s second goal in the 72nd minute and celebrated with his team-mates. Mourinho ran towards the Brazil forward to join in the celebrations.

However, the referee later reviewed the incident on video and ruled that Vinicius had grabbed a Villarreal player by the hair at the start of the move.

The goal was disallowed and Vinicius was shown a straight red card, only 20 minutes after coming on. Real Madrid were reduced to 10 players for the remainder of the match.

The forward now faces the possibility of missing Real Madrid’s next-but-one La Liga fixture, the Clasico against Barcelona. An official decision on the punishment is expected, after which his availability for that match will be confirmed.

The victory marked Real Madrid’s return to winning ways following their 2-1 defeat by Atletico Madrid in the city derby.

Real Madrid moved on to 18 points and remain third in the La Liga table. They are one point behind second-placed Atletico Madrid and six points adrift of leaders Barcelona.

Villarreal stayed on eight points in 10th place.