First things first, congratulations to Real
Madrid for a well-deserved title. I love league titles because there is very little
chance to have a controversial champions. You have to prove that you are the
best for 38 fixtures. Referees’ mistakes are usually compensated over the
course of the season as well as shots to the posts and other irregularities.
Real Madrid is the champion because they
did not fail as much as their competitors. Sure, I don’t think the gap between
Barcelona and Madrid is as big as the table suggests; but the bottom line is that
Madrid dominated the tournament and won at every single important stadium.
Now, with that said there is something that
Mourinho said today that bothers me big time. During the celebration of the
title he mentioned “Some geniuses think there is only one way to win, they
think they know football by just doing a Google search”. He also mentioned that
his team played spectacularly all season. I won’t say that his team wasn’t
impressive. In fact, Real Madrid has probably the best defense-offence
transition in the world. Their counter attacks are that good. But to say that
his team played spectacularly is a bit of a stretch.
Let’s not forget that this season Real
Madrid lost the supercup against Barcelona even though they had a week more of
training. They were also eliminated from the King’s cup by Barcelona again and
lost at home to the same team after having a 1-0 lead in the first minute.
In Europe, they dominated the champions league until
they faced the first big team. Against Bayern, they were completely outplayed
and even though the penalties are a lottery they did justice to what was seen
on the pitch. Real Madrid let a 2-0 lead
score at home escape by playing a stingy football against a team that knows how
to move the ball around the pitch and generate chances.
The problem is not that Mourinho’s style is
wrong or bad. In fact, he’s a living proof that it works. What I just don’t
understand is why he underutilizes his squad the way he does. He has the players that know how to take care
of the ball. Against Bayern I wasn’t expecting a 60-40% possession but I was
expecting more control especially after the 2 goals in the first 15 minutes. They gave away the midfield and payed for it.
Mourinho won a well deserve title, but he already
proved last season that he can beat 99% of La Liga’s teams. Real Madrid
supporters want to see the beginning of an era not just a title per year. The
Santiago Bernabeu stadium is not Stanford Bridge or San Siro where you just
win. This stadium demands domination, control, and good games. If this wasn’t the case,
then why whenever the ultras chant his name there are sectors of the stadium
that still boo him? Mourinho demands crowd support but it is
hard to be into the game cheering when your team refuses to play! This isn’t a
second division team, this is Real Madrid.
The Santiago Bernabeu stadium knows
Mourinho has the tools to have an iconic team like they had not so long ago
with Del Bosque. That old man who won 2 champions league and 2 league titles
and was fired…
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