Jude Bellingham has begun the new season with renewed authority, emerging as one of the biggest beneficiaries of Jose Mourinho’s tactical changes at Real Madrid.
The England midfielder has produced two goals and three assists across Madrid’s opening three league victories, helping the Spanish giants make a perfect start under Mourinho following his return for a second spell in charge.
More important than the raw numbers has been the change in Bellingham’s role. The 23-year-old is operating much closer to goal, giving him greater freedom to influence attacks and recreate the form that made his first season at the Bernabeu so spectacular.
During the 2023-24 campaign, Bellingham scored 23 times as Madrid claimed both La Liga and the Champions League. His next two seasons were less productive as tactical demands pushed him deeper and injuries disrupted his rhythm.
A persistent shoulder problem eventually required surgery in 2025, while a hamstring injury ruled him out for 10 matches during 2026. Now fully fit again following an excellent World Cup with England, Bellingham appears ready to return to his most effective role.
Mourinho Reduces Bellingham’s Defensive Burden
One of Mourinho’s first significant tactical decisions has been to reduce the amount of defensive ground Bellingham is expected to cover.
Madrid frequently asked the midfielder to drop into deep areas last season, sometimes forcing him to defend close to his own penalty box before attempting to join attacks at the opposite end.
Under Mourinho, that responsibility has changed.
Bellingham has mainly operated as the number 10 in a 4-2-3-1 formation, positioned behind Kylian Mbappe while being allowed to drift across the attacking third.
The adjustment gives him more opportunities to receive possession between midfield and defence, carry the ball towards goal and combine with Madrid’s forwards. He can also make the late penalty-area runs that became one of his trademarks during his debut season in Spain.
Instead of repeatedly switching between defensive, midfield and attacking responsibilities, Bellingham now spends considerably more time in positions where he can directly hurt opponents.
Higher Pressing Keeps Bellingham Near Madrid’s Attack
Mourinho has not removed Bellingham’s defensive responsibilities altogether.
The midfielder is still expected to press aggressively and help regain possession, but that work now begins much higher up the pitch.
That positioning means Bellingham is already close to Mbappe, Vinicius Jr and Madrid’s other attacking players when possession is recovered. The team can therefore move forward more quickly, with Bellingham acting as the connection between midfield and the front line.
His mobility remains essential to Mourinho’s system, but the Portuguese coach is using that energy differently.
Rather than asking Bellingham to cover almost every area of the pitch, Madrid are concentrating his influence around the attacking zones where his physical strength, passing, movement and finishing can have the greatest effect.
The approach has also helped strengthen the early relationship between player and manager. Mourinho has made Bellingham central to his plans and sees his combination of technical quality, athleticism, tactical awareness and mentality as particularly difficult to replace.
World Cup Form Carries Into Club Season
Bellingham entered the new campaign with confidence after an exceptional World Cup for England.
He finished the tournament with seven goals and one assist from eight appearances, once again showing how dangerous he can become when given licence to operate close to the opposition penalty area.
Mourinho has taken notice of how England manager Thomas Tuchel deployed the midfielder and has adopted similar principles at Madrid.
That tournament also gave Bellingham momentum despite his later return to club training, which left him with less preparation time than many of his Madrid team-mates.
So far, there has been little indication that the shortened pre-season has affected him.
Madrid have won all three of their league matches, scoring 10 goals while conceding only twice. It remains an early stage of the campaign, and the schedule will become considerably more demanding once Champions League fixtures are added, but the opening signs have been encouraging.
For Bellingham, the most significant change may simply be clarity.
His versatility means he is capable of influencing almost every phase of a match, but Mourinho appears determined to ensure that his biggest contributions happen closer to the opposition goal.
After two injury-hit seasons in which his attacking impact declined from the extraordinary standards of his first year in Madrid, Bellingham is once again playing with freedom and confidence.
If Mourinho continues to build the team around those strengths, the England international could be heading towards his most productive season yet.