Real Madrid vs Inter Milan reopens the Champions League at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday night, and it doubles as Jose Mourinho’s European re-debut as Real Madrid manager. Here is the kick-off time, the TV picture, and the midfield puzzle the Portuguese has to solve before the anthem plays.
Real Madrid vs Inter Milan kick-off time
The match kicks off at 21:00 CEST on Tuesday 8 September at the Santiago Bernabeu — that is 20:00 BST in the UK and 15:00 ET on the east coast of the United States. It is matchday one of the Champions League league phase.
In Spain the game is on Movistar Plus+ (dial 7) and M+ Liga de Campeones, as listed by Marca. In the United States, Managing Madrid lists Paramount+, DAZN and Amazon Prime Video as the streaming options. Elsewhere, check your local Champions League rights holder rather than assuming the usual midweek slot.
Team news: Mourinho’s midfield crisis
Los Blancos arrive off the back of their first defeat of the season, away at Real Betis at La Cartuja, and Mourinho has to rebuild the middle of his team to face the Italian champions. Arda Guler, Eduardo Camavinga and Bernardo Silva are all suspended, serving sanctions carried over from last season’s Champions League — we covered the three bans in full here.
On top of that, Rodrygo, Eder Militao and Raul Asencio remain injured, while Ferland Mendy has not been registered for the competition. Mourinho gave nothing away when asked whether Trent Alexander-Arnold would be pushed into midfield: “I’m not going to comment on that. Sorry,” he told reporters, before adding of the suspended trio, “the algorithm decided.”
There is better news elsewhere. Aurelien Tchouameni, Endrick and Thiago Pitarch all returned to full group training at Valdebebas and are in contention for the squad, per Mundo Deportivo, though none is expected to start — Tchouameni has not played a competitive match since the World Cup semi-final against Spain on 14 July. Marc Cucurella, withdrawn late in Seville with muscular discomfort, has trained normally and is available.
Predicted Real Madrid line-up
Marca and Managing Madrid both expect Jude Bellingham to drop back alongside captain Federico Valverde in a double pivot, with Brahim Diaz and a first start for Yan Diomande flanking Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe. The projected XI: Courtois; Dumfries, Konate, Huijsen, Cucurella; Valverde, Bellingham; Brahim, Diomande, Vinicius; Mbappe. Denzel Dumfries, of course, faces his former club.
What Inter bring to the Bernabeu
Cristian Chivu’s side travel in form, having come from 0-2 down to beat Napoli 3-2 in Serie A at the weekend, and they sit level at the top of the Italian table. Their one significant absence is Federico Dimarco, the reigning Serie A player of the season, who picked up a knee sprain against Napoli; Carlos Augusto is expected to replace him in Inter’s 3-5-2, with Lautaro Martinez and Marcus Thuram up front.
Michael Oliver takes the whistle. The Englishman referees Real Madrid in Europe for a sixth time, with four wins and one defeat in the previous five — and he is the official who awarded that stoppage-time penalty against Juventus at the Bernabeu in 2018.
What Mourinho wants
Asked what kind of game he was after, Mourinho left no room for interpretation. “I want to win. I could say I want to play well, but I don’t want to play well like against Betis and lose,” he said. “We’re in an eight-game stretch with the goal of qualifying. And I think we’re going to do it.”
He was equally clear that facing Chivu, one of his own Inter treble winners, carries no baggage: “Chivu will always be one of my own. I’m very happy for him.”
Kick-off is 21:00 CEST. Confirmed line-ups land around an hour before.
