“Mourinho + Money = Success” is a myth. There are two clubs (Chelsea F.C. and Real Madrid) which blindly believed in this equation. The blame for not-so-successful campaigns of these clubs was entirely on José Mourinho, but the reasons include the players, the fans and the management as well. Club is like a car which runs with the management, the coach, the players and the fans acting as the four wheels enabling a smooth ride. This article will dispel the general thought that the special one is “solely” responsible for the not-so-successful campaigns of Chelsea F.C. and Real Madrid.
Jose Mourinho – Aggression is his forte
1. Players: Players who play at a top club have to focus on the club’s ambitions and place their own interests one step lower than the club’s. This hadn’t happened in Real Madrid.
- Sergio Ramos didn’t follow the man marking plan in a set piece and then blamed Mourinho for never playing football at the highest level. This is sheer indiscipline and this happens only when the player thinks him above everyone else.
- Cristiano Ronaldo openly stated that he was sad (The reason for that is not yet known). Such an important player voicing something negativity impacts a club to the highest degree.
- Iker Casillas and Kaka should be praised here particularly. Though very famous players with good reputation and been benched by Mourinho for long spells, they didn’t complain openly or create any negativity in the media.
- Álvaro Arbeloa’s post season statement shows that there are players who did put their ambitions ahead of the club’s unlike what Mou did.
Sergio Ramos and Jose Mourinho
2. Fans: The club fans shouldn’t always put a player’s image above the club’s image. That’s what has happened when Mourinho benched Iker Casillas. What happened between Jose and Iker is not known to anyone! But, if the manager thinks that a particular player has to be benched the fans shouldn’t go against the manager and act as a negative force against the team. They jeered their manager who has the potential to shape their club, give a tough fight and topple Barcelona from their domination and their club’s very own player Adan for being played instead of Iker. Such single player worship won’t help any club to achieve greatness. (Media acts both the ways here. They criticize when player power grows stronger in any club and when a manager tries to control it criticizes him for the same. Fans shouldn’t buy in whatever media propagates and act as a negative force against the club). Half the section of the fans chanted his name throughout his last game in charge at Real Madrid. That itself is a success of José.
Mourinho, Gracias por luchar contra viento y marea
3. Management: José Mourinho received great support from Real Madrid board. Even the removal of Valdano was of great help in Mourinho acquiring greater control. In Perez’ announcement of Jose’s departure, he mentioned that the mutual consented contract termination wouldn’t have happened had Real Madrid won the Champions League (which was missed with a 4-3 loss to Dortmund in Semi Finals). This means that the club board has had their faith on Mourinho till the end (Had Madrid won the Champions League, Iker would be benched till he sorts out the issue with Mou). But this hadn’t happened at Chelsea. Though the special one instilled the much needed winning mentality into the team’s DNA, Roman’s ego went above any reason or logic. By firing Mourinho, he created an imbalance which has impacted the team till now and left the fans wanting him back.
Jose Mourinho and Roman Abramovich
4. The Special One: José accusation of everyone-but-him for the failure is also not true. He is also responsible for the not-so-successful campaigns he had. Remember that Mourinho’s attitude of creating the us-versus-everyone-else-in-the-world image is not under question. That has helped teams come close together and to stand up to succeed in all the competitions.
- Mourinho’s aggression made him poke Tito Vilanova during a match against Barcelona. That was suicidal. It was one of the incidents which even his die hard fans can’t support. His post match comments too made him the villain of footballing community.
- Mourinho wasn’t aggressive in his match against Manchester United in the Champions League 2012-13 season. He seemed more like he wanted to be Sir Alex Ferguson’s successor than to be a successful Real Madrid manager. His post match comments made him and the club look so small. That’s one of his all time low points. To say that the opponents were the best team at such an intense match would have given his team members lack of confidence and trust in him.
Jose Mourinho poking Tito Vilanova’s eye
So, with these four factors discussed, I would like to rewrite the success equation (in the beginning of this article) as follows:
Confident Board + Supportive Fans + Selfless Players + The Special One = Guaranteed Success
Hail Mourinho! Comparison of Jose Mourinho with other renowned managers are on their way. So, keep reading!
Related articles
- ‘Immature players let Mourinho down’ (iol.co.za)
- Jose Mourinho’s Final Real Madrid Match Is Picture Perfect for Photographers (bleacherreport.com)
- Jose Mourinho bids Real Mardid farewell amid Bernabeu cheers and jeers (mirror.co.uk)
In my perspective 