With an exceptional performance: Real Madrid star dusts himself off

Huijsen's turnaround owes much to the mental side. He threw himself into intensive work to rebuild his self-confidence, to fight his way back and to keep grafting through the difficult circumstances rather than drifting with the current.

Physical work proved just as decisive, and the summer played a big part. The players who missed the World Cup earned a very long rest period, seven weeks of holiday in all.

Huijsen seized the chance to draw up a personal training plan and push on physically. He trained at the Marbella Football Center, putting in long sessions and sometimes two a day, focusing on his fitness and building muscle mass.

All that sweat had one purpose: to make up for the bitterness of last season. He began it as an indispensable first-choice player and ended it out of the side, having lost his place to Rüdiger and Militão.

The numbers tell the story. Huijsen featured in just 51% of the available minutes since the last international break in March.

Inside Valdebebas, they praise Huijsen's physical improvement and his daily attitude in training. He looks "more solid," a nod to the step he has taken on an individual level.

After starting well and shaking off a minor pre-season injury, Huijsen has become a regular for Mourinho. He forms a defensive wall alongside Konaté and sits ahead of Rüdiger in the pecking order.

That position gets harder once Militão returns. The comeback is no longer far off, but nor does it look imminent.

Now Huijsen carries the promise of putting things right after a first season that failed to justify the 58 million euros paid to sign him, a fee that made him the most expensive defender in the club's history.

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