All those years waiting for a trophy at Arsenal and Cesc only needs eight minutes on the field with his buddies back in Spain and he already has a winners medal.
Last nights Copa Del Rey was exciting from beginning to end and in the end the end got a little overheated. A truly horrible scissors tackle by Marcelo on Cesc was followed by three red cards (2-1 to Real Madrid), the most bizarre act by a manager I have ever seen on a touchline (Mourinho twisting Tito's ear and then blowing him a kiss) and a nineteen man brawl, plus various non-playing staff joining in.
I've said before there is an underlying current of pure nastiness in Mourinho's teams and his attitude since arriving back in Spain is that he is determined to wind-up Barcelona and it is working. Barcelona players aren't angels but they are cute in knowing that they can work the system within the rules, Real Madrid have three or four players who simply are incapable of doing that. The two footed tackles and the elbowing (did anybody really believe that Pepe didn't know exactly where Iniesta was?), the blocking off (the only thing Carvallho has done with distinction throughout his whole career)and the looks of innocence when what amounts to an assault is committed have gone too far. Everybody likes a full blooded game but there's a snide side to the Real Madrid set-up that goes beyond "a man's game," and it needs to be addressed soon because a Barcelona player will get seriously injured in one of the fixtures and Mourinho will walk away shrugging his shoulders.
Ironically Real Madrid had gone toe to toe in footballing terms over the two legged fixture and perhaps if Ronaldo hadn't gone missing yet again in a big game when his team needed him they could have won. Contrast his team performance with that of Lionel Messi and Andres Iniesta, neither of whom are fully fit and you wonder how his team mates put up with it. Messi looking a stone heavier than last year scored two goals and set-up Iniesta for the other goal in the 3-2 win, Madrid scored through Ronaldo and Khaderia.
Madrid have four players (Iker Casillas, Xabi Alonso, Sergio Ramos and Mesut Ozil)who wouldn't look out of place in a Barcelona shirt but the others (excluding Ronaldo) are consistently treading that line about playing within the laws, Barcelona aren't eleven angels themselves, Sergio B, Dani Alves and Javier Mascherano aren't shrinking violets but their crime tends to be acting rather than dirty play.
Oh and Pinto looks and behaves stupidly for a man of his age.
p.s an update to what I posted above. Having looked at the Mourinho incident again it looks like he's actually trying to gouge the eyes of the Barcelona coach.
2 comments:
I think the first half was one of the best halves of football I've seen in a long while. Marcelo... what an ugly tackle (and not the first) laughably Mourinho said one stupid thing and one thing I actually agree with as I said the very same thing watching the game with one of my lads and his mate:
"Marcelo got a red card because we all know what happens after tackles in certain areas of the pitch"
LOL! If he means in front of the Barca bench then he would normally have a point as they all jump up crying when nothing happens but yesterday they had reason!
"It was a spectacular game from the first to last minute. But from the first minute of the second half, and I don't criticise it because I know people do it, the ball boys hid the balls.
Indeed...and I said it myself. At the Bernabeu they were so quick there were sometimes when two balls appeared at once...yesterday...
tumbleweed..
P.S. Thanks for the link! :-)
Cesc has his equivalent of the Charity shield...one more cup/trophy and he's beaten his Arsenal "record" jejeje
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