With the football the two managers insist on playing, I sincerely hope Barcelona win La Lliga.

They play by far the more pleasing on the eye football. But Mourinho just seems to have that gift of winning titles. It will go to the wire. I just think Real will sneak it. Watch Barca have it won by March

I backed Madrid pre-season with Mourinho tipping the scales for me. He said in the post match press conference that it wasn't a match to mourn over and that it would be easy to move on from. Fair enough, but to then blame the referee for a bad performance edges towards desperate.
He's been trying to play mind games with Guardiola all season and it still hasn't worked. I have no doubt he'll cary on and I have no doubt that it will all be in vain. Didn't see how sitting on the bench yawning after Barça's third goal did anything to help his players, but I haven't won leagues in three different countries so it probably went straight over my head.
The Madrid supporters in the bar said nothing about Madrid playing badly only that Barcelona had played them off the park, and fair play to them.

Real didn't play because they weren't allowed to play, it's that simple. Villa, Pedro and Messi were allover them from the front. Real's team was massively imbalanced, they massively lacked athleticism in midfield and they never attempted to defend from the front.

Barca are 5 goals better than Madrid when it comes to the strength and chemistry of the team, Madrid have great names, but last night's result didn't flatter Barca or do their performance justice. Madrid have received a lot of hype this year, but this was their first test and they were blown out of the water, they were completely outplayed by a side that is far superior to them in every single aspect of the game, including management.

Off down to Arsenal for the game tonight - I must be mad lol

You really think that Guardiola's far superior to Mourinho?

I'm forever blowing bubbles!!

Well yes of course, he'd easily be able to go to all these other countrys and win trophy after trophy. I mean it wasn't as if he was simply handed this Barcelona team was it?

They've done well but then again even Leeds United managed to beat this side last season

I'm sure Fergie's devastated. He might even manage to shrug a shoulder over it.

A team which hadn't won the league for two years.
During his time in charge he's managed to offload Samuel Eto'o, Giovani dos Santos, Edmílson, Deco, Ronaldinho, Gianluca Zambrotta, Oleguer Presas, Santiago Ezquerro, Marc Crosas. Has anyone other than Eto'o done anything of note since they left the Camp Nou?
He's bought in Dani Alves, Seydou Keita, Gerard Piqué and brought Sergio Busquets, Pedro and Jeffrén into the first team. He isn't on the same level as Alex Ferguson obviously and I don't believe he's on the same level as Mourinho yet. As for winning leagues in different countries, well I don't think Guardiola will ever be able to be judged on that as I can't see him managing anywhere other than Barcelona.

The thing about Mourinho is, he's picked his jobs very well and also timed his exits perfectly. He's an effective coach rather than a good one IMO, he knows how to grind out wins but does not produce good football teams.

Of all his achievements, Porto's European Cup is still the only one that genuinely impresses me. He went to Chelsea when they were playing fantasy football with their spending, so no wonder he achieved some domestic success. He then left when the fans were still in love with him and managed to shift the blame to Abramovich/Grant etc. Then he moved on to a side who had won the league for the last 3 years and simply maintained their position, then added a European Cup with his usual grinding tactics. He again timed his exit superbly when the team was getting older and could only go downhill (especially when they appointed an eccentric to replace him). His next job was another good choice too, a long line of underachievement with another licence to spend big. Almost certain to finish 2nd, if he wins something he'll be lauded again, if he doesn't it's just the unstoppable might of Barcelona that's too much to compete with.

He drops hints about the Portugal job but has so far shied away from it. My guess is that he's waiting for either a failure to qualify for a major tournament (so he can step in and be the saviour for the next tournament after the blip passes), or for a new 'golden generation' to emerge with a genuine chance of winning.

This reputation as a tactical genius with a golden touch is somewhat overblown IMO.

Mourinho got it badly wrong last night, he should have taken the chance presented by Higuain's injury to boost the midfield with Diarra but, maybe not wanting to lose face with a defensive move, he went with Benzema - as you say he and Ronaldo are never going to defend from the front, essential against Barca and a midfield three of Ozil, Alonso and Khedira were never going to be able to live with the movement and incisive passing. Defensively they just seemed to be playing an offside trap which is suicide against opposition like that.

I hope Manuel Pellegrini had a good laugh watching that last night anyway.

They were really in a terrible way then?



"Managed to offload"??? As though it's difficult to find someone to take Eto'o, Ronaldinho off your hands.



One of the, IMO stupid, criticisms of Mourinho was that it's okay managing Chelsea to the title, but what would he do with Torquay United?

I think that was completely ridiculous, seeing that Mourinho had worked his way from being a "translator" for Robson to Leira, earned his shot at Porto and won the CL with them. He's earned his place at the top tier of managers.

Guardiola clearly hasn't earned his position. He's just the lucky recipient of Barca's willingness to take a chance on an ex-player. He has had fantastic success at Barca, but that doesn't mean he is a good manager. Gullit and Vialli had success at Chelsea, but they couldn't do 5hit anywhere else. Similar story with Rijkaard.



If he wins 20 titles and 5 CL's at Barca then he'll rightly be regarded very highly.

If he wins a couple more titles and then leaves Barca to play with his train sets then he won't.

I do think Guardiola is underrated as a coach, in his first season Barca finished about 8 or 9 points clear at the top, the season before he took charge they had finished a distant 3rd, ten points behind Villarreal in second, one less win and they wouldn't even have made the Champions League that they ended up winning.

How is a coach winning the CL with Porto and Inter not "good"?



10 years as a manager - 1 defeat at home in the league. You might not be impressed, but there'll be no one else in football history with a record like that.



Some domestic success? FFS.





Shift the blame???

Even if Mourinho was fiddling with 5 year old boys in his free time Chelsea should have been chaining him to Stamford Bridge so he couldn't leave. Of course Abramovich was to blame for him going. Grant should have been nowhere near Chelsea.

If Mourihno was going to leave Chelsea he would have done it, just like he did with Porto and Inter. Chelsea got rid of him, IMO, because Abramovich thought that anyone could manage Chelsea to success and Mourinho didn't deserve the praise. He was clearly wrong.



Beating Barca 3-1 in the CL semi. Grinding tactics.





League title, cup and Champions League. There is pretty much nowhere else but downhill.

And 99% of clubs would willingly accept a league title and CL before a manager leaves.



A good choice. It's one of the best jobs in world football. But it's also clearly difficult. Not only do the stupid ***** at Madrid want titles and and CL's, they want to tell you how you play as well.



He's made it clear he wants to manage Portugal, but he's also made it clear he sees it as a job for when he's older. He clearly wants day in day out control of a top club.

If you're fighting for titles in England and Spain WTF would you give that up to work part time as an international manager?



From hazy memory, he asked if he'd be allowed to coach Portugal part time for the last world cup but Inter said no way. Which, IMO, Inter were right to do.

The Madrid job is a million times better than the Portugal job, so he's right to be there.



TBH, your assessment of how he took Porto to the CL, Chelsea to the titles, Inter to the CL and earned himself the Real job clearly shows tactical genius. You're just too much of a [icl[/i to realise it.

We hadn't won a thing for 25 years. Gullit won the FA Cup for us. Vialli won the UEFA, FA Cup and League Cup. (dodgy memory alert - can't be d to check it.)

Are Vialli and Gullit good coaches? I don't think the geordies, Watford and LA think so.

Right Guard won the CL and league with Barca? Is he a good coach?

Avram Grant was a penalty kick away from winning the Champions League. He outperformed Ferguson in his time at CFC. Is he a good coach? Taking two clubs to the Championship in 2 years suggests he isn't.

And Madrid decided to make it 2 Championship winning managers in 2 years that they got rid of.

It might be Guardiola's talent that won the league for them. But it might just have been Real's mental illness which gifted the league to Barca.



He was clearly not just a translator. Calling him a translator is a snide dig at him.

But Mourinhio has clearly worked and earned his position. Guardiola has not.



And maybe that's why he'll be out of football in a few years?

His record at Sparta Rotterdam and Galatasaray suggest otherwise.

The fact that he managed Gala' after managing Barca suggests otherwise.

Sorry, for Right Guard I read Guardiola. Rijkaard lost control of the dressing room and was too close to many of the senior players according to many over here.

No, not really, but Barca, as a team, that includes Barca's coaching staff in its entirety, are a lot better than Madrid's. The way Barca are coached is simply many levels above any side in Europe. That doesn't mean they aren't beatable, they can be beaten, but no side is anywhere near their level when at their peak, IMO. Barca's football isn't just a spot of luck, or a golden generation of players that just so happened to come through/peak when Guardiola came in, it's the result of hard work, commitment, brains and a 'vision' that has been brought to life to almost perfection.

Mourinho is a good coach, he massively emphasises on the psychological side of things, but that's why I don't think he's a 'great' coach, if that makes sense? Yes, people will point to achievements and various statistics, but what I see on the field isn't 'great', I don't see a side that is coached to play great football, a side that is coached to play fluidly, and a side that is built with attacking intentions. Maybe it's an unwritten law or something, but I feel if a coach can't coach his side to play great football, then it shows an inability to coach a side to do that. If Mourinho could build a great side that could win, entertain yet have his 'stamp' on it, then I feel he'd seal his place in greatness. My opinion matters little, obviously, and you'll be quick to rubbish it, as per, but I still think if Mourinho was to be remembered as a true great, then he'd have to show more than one way to win.

A golden generation with plenty of football ahaed of them;
Valdes - 28, Dani Alves -27, Piqué - 23, David Villa - 28, Iniesta - 26, Bojan - 20, Messi - 23, Jeffren - 22, Mascherano - 26, Sergio - 22, Pedro - 23, Adriano - 26

Fair enough. Good answer.



Two years at Porto, three years at Chelsea, two years at Inter. 6 titles, 2 CL wins, 1 UEFA Cup, 5 cups.

Not only has he got to do that, in 3 countries, 3 different languages, but he's got to do it in a style pleasant to you as well???

I dispute that Mourinho plays boring football anyway. He makes it clear that the goal is the silverware at the end of the season, so he's not big on hammering dross sides 7-0 when you can kill off the game at 3 and conserve energy. But when Chelsea had Robben and Duff flying down the wings they were fantastic to watch. Part of the problem was that Robben and Duff were rarely available and that kind of talent is difficult to find.

In the season where we didn't win the title, the title was out of reach because of a 1-1 draw at the Emirates. But (dodgy memory alert again) at the Emirates we were 1-0 down at half time and were playing with ten men. We played them off the park in the second half with 10 men and got a 1-1 draw.

IMO Mourinho hasn't really had the opportunity to play different "attractive" styles of football, he's been too busy winning things. The one season he didn't win the league, he was sacked ridiculously early the next season. People jerk off about Wenger all the time, but he's had 5 years of winning nothing and he's still in a job. Mourinho could win La Liga and the CL this season and still end up fired, such is the difference between the Arsenal job and the Real one.

IMO Mourinho will be at Real for the next ten+ years. I think multiple titles and CL's will be won and they will also play a great deal of magnificent football. I just don't see a move to Citeh or United being an option for JM, unless Real decide to do an Abramovich and slit their own wrists.