'Mourinho is afraid of nothing, I saw him go after Cristiano Ronaldo' - former player issues Real Madrid dressing room warning

This season marks the return of Jose Mourinho to Real Madrid, thirteen years after the Portuguese boss left the club, having managed the side between 2010 and 2013.

Present in 2011 during the Special One's first spell at the Bernabeu, Emmanuel Adebayor has explained to Top Mercato why the Portuguese is the right manager to sort out Real Madrid's dressing room issues.

Jose Mourinho's return comes after a turbulent season in Madrid and the short-lived spells of Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa, who both paid the price not only for underwhelming results and a trophyless campaign, but also for their inability to control a dressing room known to be difficult to manage.

Emmanuel Adebayor, who worked under the Portuguese boss at Real Madrid, is not making any predictions about the results Mourinho will achieve. However, the former Togolese forward is certain of one thing: Mourinho has the qualities needed to regain control of a dressing room of this magnitude.

'I do not know if he will succeed, the results will tell us that. We all saw the dressing room implode under Alonso, who is nevertheless a good manager.'

'With Mou, it will not go the same way. He has huge experience, a strong character to manage a club of this size. He has his own way of managing, and the players will only improve under him. Jose is a brother to me, he gave me a great deal' - the former Real Madrid forward told Top Mercato.

'Certain things will not be tolerated in the Real Madrid dressing room'

Much like the altercation between Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde, internal tensions have regularly made headlines at Real Madrid in recent months.

For Adebayor, however, Mourinho has one particular quality that could help him manage this kind of situation: he does not hesitate to assert his authority, regardless of the status of the player involved.

'There are problems in every dressing room. What is certain, with Mou, is that certain things will not be tolerated.'

'He has won everything: the Champions League, the Europa League, the Spanish league, and so on. With a manager like that, when he speaks to you, you have no choice but to listen.'

'He is inspiring. He knows how to get inside players' heads. He is not afraid of pressure from journalists or supporters. He will carry all of that on his own shoulders in order to free his players from that outside pressure.'

This ability to absorb pressure and protect his group, while also enforcing strict rules, is, according to Adebayor, one of the Portuguese boss's greatest strengths. The 42-year-old still holds several memories from his time in Madrid.

When Mourinho went after Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo

Adebayor recalls one particular scene involving Cristiano Ronaldo, who was already a Ballon d'Or winner at the time.

During a match, Real Madrid were leading 2-0 at half-time despite a first-half display Mourinho considered unacceptable. The manager's reaction towards his star player was particularly forceful.

'If my memory serves me right, we were playing away at Villarreal in the league and were leading 2-0 at half-time, but we were playing badly.'

'At half-time, though, Jose went off at Cristiano Ronaldo. He dared to call CR7, who was already a Ballon d'Or winner at that point, every name under the sun! He ended up scoring twice and we won 5-0.'

'That shows you the standards and the nerve Jose has. Very few managers dare go after players like Cristiano Ronaldo. I also remember seeing him shout at and drop Casillas and Sergio Ramos, who were World Cup winners. He is afraid of nothing' - recalled the Lome-born forward, who also expressed pride at seeing Yan Diomande follow in his footsteps as Real Madrid's next African forward.

For Adebayor, this anecdote involving Ronaldo sums up the Mourinho method perfectly: star status alone is not enough to escape the manager's demands.

With Real Madrid bringing back a boss who already knows exactly what the pressure of the job involves, the dressing room knows what to expect. With Mourinho in charge, Adebayor is convinced, certain lines simply will not be crossed.