According to a report by Madrid Universal on Saturday, October 31, 2026, Real Madrid’s impressive revival under Jose Mourinho has been built on tactical improvements, better defensive organisation and greater control in midfield. However, Kylian Mbappe’s exceptional goalscoring form has also been a major factor behind the team’s progress.

The French forward has become a key figure in Mourinho’s plans, with the Portuguese manager showing little willingness to take him off during matches.

According to MARCA, Mbappe has played more minutes than any other outfield player across Europe’s top five leagues this season.

The 27-year-old has featured for 1,161 minutes out of the 1,170 minutes Real Madrid have played, meaning he has missed only nine minutes of action throughout the campaign.

Mourinho has started Mbappe in every match this season and substituted him on just three occasions. The forward was taken off against Inter Milan in the 93rd minute, Sevilla in the 84th minute and RB Leipzig in the 88th minute.

His remarkable availability has also been matched by an outstanding goalscoring record. Mbappe has already scored 14 goals across all competitions, making him Real Madrid’s leading scorer by a significant margin.

Carlos Espi, Arda Guler, Jude Bellingham and Yan Diomande are the club’s next-highest scorers, with three goals each.

Barcelona forward Raphinha has scored 15 goals, moving ahead of Mbappe’s tally, although the Brazilian has reached that figure in considerably fewer minutes.

Mbappe’s contribution explains why Mourinho considers him almost impossible to leave out of the starting lineup, particularly because other Real Madrid players have yet to provide similar goalscoring numbers.

However, depending so heavily on the Frenchman could become a concern as the season progresses. With his 28th birthday approaching, managing his workload is increasingly important, especially given his explosive style of play and the demands of a long campaign.

Real Madrid are scheduled to face Racing Santander, AEK Athens and Valencia in quick succession, leaving Mourinho with important decisions about Mbappe’s playing time and recovery.

The forward may be reluctant to miss the Racing Santander fixture as he looks to achieve another La Liga goalscoring milestone against a new opponent.

Nevertheless, Real Madrid must consider their long-term ambitions rather than risk exhausting their leading attacker during the early stages of the season.

With Barcelona also competing closely for the league title, Mourinho will be eager to maintain his team’s momentum. However, carefully managing Mbappe’s minutes could be crucial to keeping him effective throughout the campaign.

Whether Mourinho eventually decides to rest his star forward or continues relying on him for almost every minute remains to be seen.