The Real Madrid claimed the 81st edition of the Trofeo Teresa Herrera with a 0-1 victory over Deportivo de La Coruña at the Estadio ABANCA-Riazor, according to match reports. The club secured its 10th victory in the tournament, marking its first triumph since 2013, per accounts from Emisoras Unidas. The decisive sequence arrived in stoppage time of the opening period when Real Madrid goalkeeper Andriy Lunin caught a corner kick and instantly launched a long throw downfield. Brahim Díaz collected the ball in midfield, shielded it under pressure from Mario Soriano, used his knee to control the trajectory, and slotted a right-footed shot past Deportivo goalkeeper Leo Román, as detailed by El País. The solitary strike proved enough to lift the gigantic Teresa Herrera trophy—shaped like A Coruña’s iconic Tower of Hercules—for the 10th time in club history.
Until that sharp transition, the first half played out at a slow, experimental summer-preseason pace. Mourinho deployed an unfamiliar starting XI that left marquee names like Kylian Mbappé, Thibaut Courtois, Aurélien Tchouaméni, and Jude Bellingham out of the squad. In their absence, the visitors struggled to break down a compact, well-organized Deportivo side managed by Antonio Hidalgo. The Galician hosts, preparing for their upcoming Segunda División campaign starting against Elche at Riazor, successfully bottled up central spaces and denied clean service to Brazilian forward Endrick and returning winger Vinícius Júnior.
Experimental Lineups and Midfield Construction Struggles
With Toni Kroos retired and Luka Modric departed, Mourinho experimented in central midfield by pairing Eduardo Camavinga with veteran Portuguese playmaker Bernardo Silva, while Federico Valverde began the evening on the bench. According to tactical breakdowns from El País, deploying Silva in a deeper role failed to fully resolve Real Madrid’s long-standing construction difficulties against low-block defenses.
Deportivo’s defensive discipline restricted the visitors to very few open-play chances during the opening 45 minutes, with Endrick registering one of the few early threats via a 39th-minute header from an Arda Güler free-kick. The home side’s backline—anchored by summer acquisition Leo Román, who arrived from Mallorca for a reported nine million euros—largely kept the visitor’s attack under wraps until Brahim’s individual brilliance broke the deadlock.
Tournament History and What Lies Ahead
The Trofeo Teresa Herrera stands as one of Spanish football’s oldest and most prestigious summer friendlies. Established in 1946 to raise funds for local hospitals in A Coruña, the tournament boasts a rich international history. Deportivo de La Coruña remains the competition’s historical leader with 26 titles, while Real Madrid’s latest win solidifies their standing as the tournament’s primary runner-up with 10 trophies.
Real Madrid will wrap up their summer preparations on Sunday, August 16, when they travel to Germany to face Schalke 04 at the Veltins-Arena in Gelsenkirchen, according to match scheduling reports. Following that fixture, the squad will wait out an opening-week postponement in La Liga before officially kicking off their domestic league campaign in the second round of fixtures.
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