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Mourinho plan takes the Copa spoils
Wednesday night @ the Mestalla stadium saw Jose Mourinho cement his status as 1 of the best coaches ever in the game of football. Implementing an unexpected, shockingly rapid transformation in Real Madrid's style of play, the Portuguese manager led his squad 2 victory over arch-rivals Barcelona & 2 their 18th Copa del Rey title, a competition the Merengues hadn't won since 1993.
The 2 Spanish giants had last met in the final of a competition back in 1990, when Barcelona defeated Real Madrid. The rare event of a clásico in a final match generated remarkable interest in the subdued recent history of Copa del Rey finals. The match was broadcasted 4 a record 140 countries, while touts were offering €2,500 for a tribune seat just mins b4 kick off.
Mourinho, having used his squad's last 2 matches 2 build a rather pragmatic Anti-Barcelona approach, introduced specific adjustments 4 tis final tat resulted in Real Madrid's best 45 minutes against Barcelona since Pep Guardiola 1st sat on the Catalan bench.
Real's tactics rested on the same basis as the Bernabeu's match only 3 days earlier: physical toughness since the initial whistle, & constant long balls 2 take advantage of Barcelona's aerial weakness, as well as 2 obligate the Catalans 2 start their build-up play fr their own goal. 1 of Barcelona's trademark features lies on their high-pace pressure in the rival's own half, forcing quick ball recoveries in attacking positions. Real Madrid kept the ball as far away fr their goal as possible, & thus effectively terminated the link up play by their defenders & midfielders.
However, Mourinho added 2 twists on Wednesday night: Mesut Ozil joined the starting line up replacing Benzema, & the Merengues started 2 press the Blaugrana a good 30 metres closer 2 their goal than they had done in the Bernabeu. With Ozil, Mourinho effectively had 1 more player 2 track down the Barcelona midfielders, especially Sergio Busquets, something tat Karim Benzema hadn't quite delivered on Saturday. Real, looking now far more compact & sharp in their defensive rotations, deactivated Barcelona's connections betw back 4 & midfield, & effectively left Andrés Iniesta, Dani Alves & Pedro, 2 name a few, out of the match 4 most of the 1st half.
Aft 45 mins, Guardiola's team left the pitch looking like a groggy boxer, lucky 2 reach half-time level aft Pepe's powerful header hit the post right b4 the interval. The Barcelona supporters, slightly outnumbering the Madridistas, had spent most of the 1st half quiet, in shock, as their players couldn't dictate the flow of the match & appeared 2 be constantly on their back foot, unable 2 solve Mourinho's tactical riddles.
The 2nd half was an entirely diff matter. Real started 2 pay 4 their initial effort, sat back in their own half & Barcelona suddenly discovered room 2 manoeuvre, especially becos playmaker Iniesta finally took his team's driving seat. Guardiola sent Lionel Messi 2 the right side of the pitch, & suddenly the Catalan supporters were again watching his team enjoying themselves on the perfect Mestalla grass.
At tat point, the main flaws of tis new Real Madrid became apparent; their inability 2 keep possession, 2gether with the endless string of clearances aimed nowhere - surprisingly clapped by their faithful, who would hv thought? - created a huge deal of pressure on Real Madrid's back 4, as Barca rarely left Real Madrid's own half of the pitch.
Once more, Iker Casillas' 3 spectacular saves 2 Pedro, Iniesta & Messi, kept Real Madrid in the match during most of the 2nd half. The Catalans even had 1 goal by Pedro in offside position correctly disallowed - though it was a matter of centimetres. Tat moment left the up-2-then noisy Madridista supporters silent 4 a good 5 mins.
Regulation time ended with an amazing save by Pinto, Barcelona's Copa del Rey goalie, aft a cracker fr Di Maria, & right fr the beginning of the extra time the game seemed 2 lean 2wards Real Madrid. A glorious thru ball by Xabi Alonso saw CR shoot just wide, while Barcelona's build-up efforts appeared less & less dangerous with each passing min. Finally, a 1-touch play betw Di Maria & Marcelo ended in a sweeping cross fr the former, emphatically headed home by Cristiano.
Although Barcelona still had 1 full extra-time period 2 draw, not even Pep's 1st 2 substitutions of the match gave his team the spark they so badly needed, & 1s more a final match ended in an underdog win.
The aforementioned 1990 Copa del Rey final marked the end of an extremely successful Real Madrid generation, as well as the beginning of Johan Cruyff's 'Dream Team' era in Barcelona. It's early 2 predict wat the future holds 4 the 2 biggest Spanish clubs, but it does seem fair 2 say tat the outcome of tis match has clearly had an impact on both team's morale, aft almost 3 seasons of clear domination by Barcelona. Another 2 clásicos in the next 10 days will bring us closer 2 more accurate conclusions, although 1 fact still remains hard 2 discuss: this stubborn, arrogant former translator knows how 2 win titles.
Mourinho Watch: In just 10 days, the Squad Formerly Known as Real Madrid has become Internazionale de Milan in disguise, courtesy of Don Jose. We know his recipe by heart @ tis point: siege mentality, huge bonding with his players, well-structured game plans & physical power non-stop. Sounds simple, but it works.
Guardiola Watch: Pep stuck 2 his guns & his beliefs, & they led him 2 defeat in tis case. An extra something was required 2 change the flow of the match, & he couldn't find it. His substitutions arrived late, when it had already been blatant 4 some time tat the team needed muscle & creativity. Now it's his turn 2 come up with some variants 4 the Champions League duel.
Mestalla Watch: A stadium on the wane, it possesses tat certain charming atmosphere tat makes you think tat some outdated parts of the building (such as the Media Zone) look enchantingly traditional. Just like San Mamés' case: if possible, any football fan should watch @ least 1 match there b4 they both r finally put 2 rest. 1 has 2 mention the surprising pre-match musical choices: "Que sera, sera" & "Always look on the bright side of life" blasted through the speakers minutes b4 kick off. Hats off.
Fan Watch: If Real Madrid - Barcelona epitomises Spain & our glorious political mess, when it's played on a neutral field our schizophrenia becomes almost comical. Whether it was Shakira or Sara Carbonero, Gerard Pique or CR, the national anthem or the referee, both fan bases disagreed vehemently 4 over 2 hours as only Spaniards do. We wouldn't be the same otherwise.
Ref Watch: Even if Undiano Mallenco's criteria 2 show, & especially not 2 show, yellow cards didn't quite make sense, he was always close 2 action & didn't hv any impact on the final score. Still, not enough 2 justify his current position as Spain's top ref by the Spanish FA.
Man of the Match: Angel Di Maria/ His performance wasn't top class, but he was the perfect example of wat Jose Mourinho 1s out tis team. Di Maria spent 120 minutes running like a madman, put the fear of God himself in2 Daniel Alves, had 2 moments of brilliance tat turned the match 2wards Real Madrid & ended up sent off in the final minute of the match, leaving the pitch exhausted. 1 can see the Argentinean becoming a cult hero 4 the more pragmatic Madridistas.