Rossa McDermott
THE return leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-final at the Camp Nou in Barcelona on Tuesday night only served to confirm that Jose Mourinho got the tactics wrong in the first leg, losing not only the match at home – but also some key players for the second leg. Both very costly.
The defensive stature of Inter Milan last season was well beyond the current Real Madrid back four with Brazilians Maicon and Lucio combining with Christian Chivu and Real Madrid reject, Walter Samuel – ably supported by Esteban Cambiasso and Javier Zanetti, to make attacking goals difficult to come by. Having won the Italian double last season for a second consecutive year the Inter XI did not lack motivation when they travelled to the Santiago Bernabeu a year ago to play the final – securing the trophy from German rivals Bayern Munich with relative ease.
Although much has been written about the Mourinho effect in the first leg of the Champions League encounter this season, as well as the absence of The Special One in the return leg, it would appear that Real Madrid conceded victory to the Barcelona TikiTaka football almost from the moment the final whistle went at White Hart Lane in the quarter-final. It was as if Jose realised his team were not yet ready to meet their arch rivals in a winner takes all type competition this year.
In fairness, he may be right as the Inter project was into its second season when they won the treble - including the Champions League - with the first season only securing the Serie A Scudetto. Real Madrid this year have only one trophy with a team that is not yet fit for purpose one could argue with another year required if it is to take on Barcelona and win La Liga. Or win the Champions League for that matter.
The restricted formations over the two legs almost conceded that point to any Real Madrid fans that a 2-0 deficit was not completely insurmountable in the Catalan capital, with the negative approach in the home leg being the team’s downfall. As if to add weight to the view the words of former club president, Ramon Calderon, will not prove helpful either as he claimed that Mourinho’s antics have been “harmful” to the club. He also questioned whether the Portuguese coach will remain at the helm for a second season.
“I think what he did in terms of talking about UEFA and referees is not acceptable at all. It doesn’t match with Real Madrid’s history,” he told BBC Radio 5 Live.
“I assume that he’s a very, very good manager, but talking like that has been harmful for Real Madrid. I think big clubs can never blame the referee for their defeats,” he said. “I think the semi-final was over in the first match at the Bernabeu when we lost 2-0.
“We invested €450 million in the last two years to build a very important and strong team, so if you lose you can’t blame injuries, bad luck, the referee... If you lose, you have to congratulate your rival.”
Mourinho’s failure in the Champions League will also further failure when the Primera Division La Liga title race goes to Barcelona, leading to Calderon insisting that it is by no means a certainty that the 48-year-old will stay on for another year at the Bernabeu.
“It is difficult to succeed here because people are very demanding,” he said. “There’s a lot of pressure here. He said he’s going to (continue) in his position next year, but you never know.”
For Mourinho it is the current President, Florentino Perez, that really matters and when he was hired last summer after the final whistle in the Santiago Bernabeu the vision for Real Madrid was clear.
“The style of Mourinho fits with Real Madrid,” said Perez at the time. “Aiming above everything to win, with sacrifice and spirit. We could not miss the chance to bring in the best in the world. What matters to Real Madrid is winning and being the top side in Europe.
For Mourinho the practice to date has been to win the league titles in his first season and so it was at Porto, at Stamford Bridge with Chelsea, and at Inter Milan. But a record that was ended by Barcelona and may prove the biggest headache for Perez as Real Madrid have fallen short in La Liga and Europe. On the highest salary in the game and million euro budgets for players, Mourinho has not delivered for Perez
Managers who have won the league title for Perez have not enjoyed job security at the Bernabeu and so it remains to be seen what arises for one who has failed to win La Liga. Will winning the Copa del Rey be enough? The noises so far from the former President are not so good.
And the silence from the current President deafening.
Source: http://feeds.examiner.ie/~r/iesportsblog/~3/eCIUIRdxHl8/post.aspx
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