Jose Mourinho has been named La Liga Manager of the Month for October after guiding Real Madrid through a perfect month, capped by a 2-1 El Clasico victory over Barcelona at the Spotify Camp Nou.
La Liga confirmed the award on Monday, with Mourinho beating Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone and Real Sociedad coach Pellegrino Matarazzo in the final vote. It is his first Manager of the Month award of the 2026/27 season, and he succeeds Barcelona manager Hansi Flick, who won the September prize.
A perfect October
Real Madrid won every league match they played in October. The run began with a narrow 1-0 victory over Villarreal, continued with an emphatic 4-1 win over Sevilla, and finished with the result that defined the month: a 2-1 victory over Barcelona in El Clasico on 25 October, a win that handed Flick's side their first league defeat of the campaign.
La Liga described October as an outstanding month for the Spanish giants, with a 100 per cent win record in the competition. Three league games, nine points, and a statement win at the home of their biggest rivals made Mourinho the clear winner of the vote.
The Special One, second time around
The award is another marker in Mourinho's second spell at the Bernabeu. The Portuguese, whose first tenure from 2010 to 2013 delivered a La Liga title, a Copa del Rey and a Spanish Super Cup, returned to Madrid this year and has quickly rebuilt a side that wins the games that matter most.
As Yardbarker noted in its report of the award, the recognition rewards a perfect month in the Spanish top flight and underlines that Mourinho remains a significant figure in European football. His Madrid side have carried that form into November too, cruising to a 3-0 win at Valencia on Saturday through goals from Federico Valverde, Arda Guler and Kylian Mbappe.
So what does it mean for the title race?
October's perfection kept Madrid firmly in the hunt, but the race has moved on again. Barcelona responded on Sunday, coming from behind to win at Atletico Madrid through a Fermin Lopez brace, as covered in our full-time report from the Metropolitano. That result leaves Barcelona three points clear at the top on 33 points, with Madrid second on 30 and Atletico third on 28 after 12 games.
The international break now pauses the race, and when La Liga resumes Mourinho's side will need another flawless run to reel Flick's leaders back in. The good news for Madrid is that their manager has just shown, across a whole month, exactly how to produce one.
Beyond the Final Whistle: Manager of the Month awards are usually a footnote, but this one tells a story — Mourinho was hired to win the biggest games again, and in October he won all of them, including the Clasico in Barcelona's own home. Flick took September, Mourinho took October; the title race may well be decided by which of them owns the months that remain.
Is Mourinho the right man to take the La Liga title back to Madrid this season? Let us know what you think in the comment section.
