Jose Mourinho has responded to Benfica’s League Cup semi-final exit in typically uncompromising fashion, ordering his players to remain at the club’s Seixal training complex for several days instead of returning home, insisting they must “think, not sleep” after their 3-1 defeat to Braga.

The loss, which came despite Benfica taking the lead before collapsing with 10 men, has intensified scrutiny on Mourinho’s first season back in Portuguese football. Defender Nicolas Otamendi’s dismissal turned the match, and Braga ruthlessly exploited the numerical advantage to book their place in the final at Benfica’s expense.

In his post-match news conference, Mourinho made clear that there would be no emotional escape or physical respite for his squad. Rather than granting time off with no fixture scheduled for the weekend, he announced that the entire group would stay at the Seixal training base, where they would train and, crucially, confront the nature of their performance.

“The players will sleep in Seixal, and on Thursday there is training, and the day after there’s training,” Mourinho said. “Since there’s no final on Saturday, our next game is against Porto next Wednesday.”

He then delivered the line that has dominated reaction in Portugal: “When we arrive in Seixal, everyone will go to their rooms. I hope the players sleep as well as I do, which is to say that they don’t sleep at all. That they don’t sleep and instead think a lot, like I’m going to think.”

The decision is a clear attempt to jolt a squad that has struggled to find consistency under the veteran coach. Benfica’s elimination from the League Cup removes one of the more accessible trophies on offer this season and heightens the pressure ahead of a crucial league clash with arch-rivals Porto.

Mourinho’s approach is in keeping with his long-established reputation as a demanding, confrontational manager who uses dramatic gestures to provoke a reaction. For him, the defeat was not simply a bad night but a moment that required a symbolic response: keeping the players together, under his eye, in an environment where football is the only focus.

Inside the club, the move is being interpreted as both punishment and preparation. By insisting on back-to-back training sessions and a residential stay at the training ground, Mourinho is attempting to reset standards, reinforce discipline and ensure that the Braga defeat becomes a turning point rather than the start of a slide.

Benfica’s supporters, accustomed to domestic dominance and demanding of silverware, have been restless as the team has stuttered in key moments. The League Cup may not carry the prestige of the league title or European competition, but its loss has been taken as a worrying sign that the team is not yet fully aligned with Mourinho’s methods.

The coach’s own history with Benfica adds another layer of intrigue. Mourinho’s managerial career at the top level began at the Lisbon club in 2000, but his first spell lasted only 10 matches before a dispute with the then president led to his departure. His return this season was framed as a kind of unfinished business: a chance to complete the story he never truly started.

That narrative now faces an early test. The Braga defeat has underlined how fragile Benfica’s progress remains, and how little margin for error Mourinho has been afforded. His decision to keep the players at Seixal is as much a message to the board and the fans as it is to the dressing room: he will not treat setbacks as routine, and he expects the same intensity from everyone around him.

Within the squad, reactions are likely to be mixed. Some players, particularly the younger ones, may see the enforced stay as a harsh but clear signal of the standards required at a club of Benfica’s stature. Others may view it as an old-school tactic from a coach whose methods have often been described as emotionally demanding and mentally exhausting.

What is not in doubt is the symbolic power of the gesture. By denying his players the comfort of going home after a painful defeat, Mourinho is attempting to turn discomfort into fuel. The message is blunt: the privilege of rest must be earned, and performances like the one against Braga fall well short of that threshold.