Mourinho defends €125m player

**Mourinho defends €125m player**

Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho has urged not to judge Jan Diomande solely on the huge transfer fee he paid.

The youngster joined Madrid from Leipzig for €125m, with another €5m in bonuses to come. However, Diomande has yet to score a goal for his new club.

Despite the lack of goals, Mourinho said he sees no reason to worry and that the new player needs time to adapt and gradually show his potential.

"He has to take it step by step. Jan is working hard and doing well. He is an open and humble guy, he wants to learn, he listens to his teammates and he will definitely improve in the future," the coach said.

The Real Madrid boss stressed that the high transfer fee should not lead to false expectations of the young player:

"It's not my job to expect too much from a player based on a big transfer. What's important for me is to see a player who has had a very strong season with Leipzig."

Mourinho believes that when such a large sum is paid for a player, fans automatically expect results from him immediately. However, in the case of Diomande, this approach is unfair.

"When you hear about such a large sum, you imagine a player who will surprise everyone as soon as he arrives. But here it's different. We have a young player in front of us. We have to stay calm and not worry," said Mourinho.

Jan Diomande's main personal achievement to date is being named the best young player in the Bundesliga at the end of the 2025/26 season.

The winger played 36 games for the German club last season, scoring 13 goals and providing 9 assists.

A successful season allowed Diomande to take the next step in his career: in the summer of 2026, the 19-year-old moved to Spain and became a player for Real Madrid.