Real Madrid News

The Portuguese coach sealed perhaps the greatest victory in his time at the Spanish side to silence the doubters who thought Madrid were setting themselves up for a big fall

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By Ben Hayward | Spanish Football Writer

Writing off Jose Mourinho is clearly unwise. The Portuguese has endured one controversy after another in this, his third season at the Santiago Bernabeu, and with La Liga looking lost plus difficult second leg matches away from home to come in the Copa del Rey and the Champions League against Barcelona and Manchester United, respectively, many had already waved the 50-year-old into the Spanish sunset.

How premature.

Many criticisms can be levelled at Mourinho. His antics off the pitch have been unsavoury at times and ugly at others since he signed for Madrid in 2010. But when it comes to winning football matches, the man knows what he is doing.

It took a while. After his famous triumph with Inter over Barca in 2010 en route to the Champions League trophy and the Bernabeu hotseat, Mourinho kicked off with a 5-0 defeat at Camp Nou in his first Clasico. It was the worst defeat of his career. The loss, he said, “was easy to digest.” But it must have been hard to swallow for a natural-born winner such as he is.

Mourinho’s first Clasico win – and still the only time his Madrid team have kept a clean sheet against Barca – came in the final of the Copa del Rey on April 20, 2011, when Cristiano Ronaldo headed home in extra time to seal the side’s first trophy under their new coach. It seems hard to believe now that Ronaldo had scored his first goal against Barca just four days earlier in the teams’ 1-1 league draw at the Bernabeu.

Ronaldo, it was claimed, was not a man for the big occasion. He is now. If Mourinho is the leader on the bench for this Madrid team, Ronaldo is the undisputed leader on the pitch. The 28-year-old turned Gerard Pique inside out to win a penalty, coolly converted and added a second following a devastating counter-attack in the second half.

He now has 12 Clasico goals and is only five behind Lionel Messi, overshadowed on Tuesday and only coming close with a curling free kick late in the first half.

It will have been worrying for Barcelona fans. The Blaugrana produced a poor performance at AC Milan in midweek. At home, a reaction was expected, but never materialised, part in thanks to a disciplined defensive display from the visitors.

Mourinho has never gone without a trophy since his first full season at Porto in 2002-03 – and his Madrid team will now be favourites to overcome Atletico or Sevilla in the final of the Copa del Rey.

And on this evidence, the Champions League is also within their grasp. Sir Alex Ferguson was in the crowd to watch the game ahead of Manchester United’s match against Madrid at Old Trafford. And he will not have liked what he saw. United, like Barcelona before them, had drawn the first match of their tie 1-1 in Madrid. But after this swashbuckling show from Mourinho’s men, that surely means little.

For Barcelona, the concerns continue to grow. Messi was strangely subdued again, while Carles Puyol was turned inside out for the second goal by Angel Di Maria and the whole defence now looks leakier than ever. The lack of a full-time coach really is not helping, either.

For Madrid, meanwhile, it was an unforgettable night. Mourinho managed to silence his critics once again. And whatever is happening behind the scenes at the Bernabeu, more fool those who write off Jose in the battles ahead.

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Real Madrid stormed into the Copa Del Rey final in the most stunning manner possible, with an emphatic 3-1 victory over Barcelona at Camp Nou in the second leg of their last-four clash on Tuesday.

With a 1-1 home draw to overcome from the first leg, Jose Mourinho looked on in jubilation as his team executed their gameplan to perfection, frustrating the Catalans at the back, and through an inspirational Cristiano Ronaldo, giving a counterattacking clinic up front.

The Portuguese opened the scoring from the penalty spot 12 minutes in, becoming the first player to score in six successive Clasicos away from home, and finished off a surging break shortly before the hour mark to put Madrid in the driving seat.

Raphael Varane put the finishing touches on an unbelievable night for the visitors when he headed home a corner, with Jordi Alba’s late goal coming as little consolation for the hosts, as los Blancos now await either Sevilla or Atletico Madrid in the showpiece event on May 18.

Sergio Busquets, Cesc Fabregas and Xavi returned to start in midfield for the hosts, with Carles Puyol partnering Gerard Pique in defence. For Madrid, Varane, the standout performer from the first leg, started alongside Sergio Ramos at centre back.

Barca started positively, and with only two minutes on the clock, were nearly ahead. Pedro did brilliantly to turn Fabio Coentrao inside out and square for Lionel Messi, who narrowly missed the target from a tight angle.

But instead, it would be Madrid who would take the lead. Ronaldo was simply too quick for Pique, and was tripped up inside the area, leaving the referee with no choice but to award a penalty, from which the Portuguese forward slotted coolly into the bottom corner.

The Catalans exhibited their customary dominance of the ball, but Mourinho’s men were ready with discipline and numbers at the back, and a pacey threat on the counter whenever they won the ball.

Referee Alberto Undiano‎, already the villain of the piece in the eyes of the Camp Nou faithful for the decision against Pique, was showered with further venom from the stands after correctly denying penalty appeals for Fabregas and Pedro.

And the home fans were left frustrated again moments before half time, when Messi drilled a free kick agonizingly into the side netting, with half of the stadium already celebrating a goal.

The Blaugrana went close again minutes after the restart when Diego Lopez parried an effort by Busquets, with Alvaro Arbeloa taking the rebound off the toes of Fabregas from point blank range.

But much like the start of the first half, the chance was spurned, and again, Madrid would punish their profligacy on the counterattack, this time putting the tie virtually out of reach.

Sami Khedira’s sublime first-time pass after winning the ball released Angel Di Maria against Puyol. The Barca captain was left on his backside by the skill of the winger, whose initial shot was parried by Jose Pinto, only for Ronaldo to bury the rebound.

And with 22 minutes left, Madrid were in dreamland again, when Varane rose highest to head home Mesut Ozil’s corner in almost identical fashion to his goal in the first leg.

Flares were set off in the stands as a few home fans lost patience with events on the ptich, but their mood improved ever so slightly just before injury time when Alba ghosted in behind the fullback to slot Andres Iniesta’s clipped pass beyond Lopez. 

But the damage was long done by the irrepressible visitors, who will now contest the final in three months. The Clasico drama is not quite done, however, as both sides will lock horns at Santiago Bernabeu in la Liga on Saturday.

The experienced midfielder is named in the Blaugrana’s starting XI, as a number of players return for this evening’s cup clash with Jose Mourinho’s side at Camp Nou

Barcelona (4-3-3): Pinto; Alves, Puyol, Pique, Alba; Xavi, Busquets, Fabregas; Pedro, Messi, Iniesta

Subs: To follow

Real Madrid (4-2-3-1): Lopez; Ramos, Varane, Pepe, Coentrao; Alonso, Khedira; Di Maria, Ozil, Ronaldo; Higuain

Subs: To follow

More to follow…

The former Los Blancos president feels that Mourinho’s attitude has led to disharmony in the dressing room and blamed Florentino Perez for bringing him to the club

Former Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon believes coach Jose Mourinho will leave the club and take up a post at Paris Saint-Germain.

The 61-year-old believes that the confrontational management style of the former Chelsea trainer has been the main reason for Los Blancos’ poor results this season and doubts the claims of the Portuguese that he wants to stay at Santiago Bernabeu.

“Real Madrid have a problem with Jose Mourinho’s attitude,” he told talkSPORT.

“We are not used to a coach who complains about referees, Uefa and injuries. It’s something I don’t like. We are used to talking about what’s happening on the field.

“It seems he’s going to leave and it looks like he’s off to Paris Saint-Germain. He says he’s going to stay but I don’t think so. Things have gone too far and Real Madrid are not willing to accept any more of his behaviour.

“Some of the players, mainly the Spanish stars, are not happy with this sort of behaviour. They are not used to it. They don’t like the attitude.”

Calderon continued to criticise Mourinho, and blamed current president Florention Perez for hiring the 50-year-old despite knowing what his personality was like.

“I have always said it is the president’s fault. Jose Mourinho isn’t cheating anyone. He hasn’t changed how he is, he’s always behaved like that. Wherever he’s been he’s acted in the same way. When Perez signed him he knew what he was getting.

“When I signed Cristiano Ronaldo I was dealing with Jorge Mendes, who is an agent for them both, and he kept talking to me about the prospect of signing Mourinho. I thought the same then as I do now, in the history of Real Madrid we’ve never seen a coach act like Mourinho does.”

Calderon also commented on the speculation that the club may be interested in Tottenham’s Gareth Bale, and he admitted that the Spanish champions would be able to afford the Wales international.

“I think he is a fantastic player. He is one of those players you would always like to have in your team.

“It’s true we have spent a lot of money in the last three or four years but I think we are in a position to pay the money they are going to ask for.

“There is always a limit but Real Madrid is in a very healthy situation, economically speaking, so it would be in the position to sign him.

“I’m sure it will be a high amount of money because he is a fantastic player. A lot of clubs would like to have him.”

The former Argentina trainer believes Los Blancos will have nothing to play for if they are defeated and that the pressure on Mourinho will become too much for him to stay

Former Barcelona coach Cesar Luis Menotti believes that Jose Mourinho will have to leave his post at Real Madrid should they fail to win their next three matches.

Los Blancos face Barcelona in the Copa del Rey before taking on the same opponents in La Liga on Sunday. They then complete a trio of crucial encounters when they travel to Old Trafford for the second leg of their Champions League last 16 tie against Manchester United, which stands at 1-1.

Defeat in all three of these games would leave Mourinho’s side with nothing to play for for the remainder of the season as they would be out of both cup competitions and 19 points behind Tito Vilanova’s side in the league, and Menotti believes this scenario would signal the end of the former Chelsea coach’s time at Santiago Bernabeu.

“If Madrid are out of everything in these next few weeks, Casillas becomes the figure and Mourinho will have to go,” he told Grada360.

“Football has these rules that are the same for everyone. The abuse as a coach can be handled only when you are a champion.

“All that power is only given to you for success, you do not get it if you don’t get the wins and the glory. That is what sustains the likes of Del Bosque and Guardiola.”

Menotti, who also coached Atletico Madrid and Argentina in his distinguished career, commented on the differences between Barcelona and Real Madrid ahead of Tuesday’s encounter, and believes Los Blancos rely too much on Cristiano Ronaldo.

“They [Real Madrid] have great players, but are different to Barcelona. Tactically they are a team that fights, that closes out the space well, but in the creative aspects of the game has a huge dependance on their players.

“Then, they have Cristiano, who is a barbarian who can win games. And if he plays well then they win. They achieve much, but when they do not have him to rely on, the team plays with 10 men.

“Both teams will want to win, but it looks like Barcelona are the collective and Madrid are the individuals.”