SPANISH LA LIGA TITLE RACE Real Madrid v Barcelona:REAL MADRID coach Jose Mourinho refused to speak at a news conference ahead of tonights Clasico at home to La Liga leaders Barcelona, prompting a walkout by local journalists.
The often outspoken Real Madrid coach sat with a poker face and furrowed brows next to his assistant Aitor Karanka, who took all the questions during the conference broadcast on live television and radio and lasting roughly 11 minutes.
In a bizarre spectacle, around 30 Spanish journalists who cover the club left the room in protest when a spokesman announced that Mourinho would not be speaking and it was left to representatives of the international media to quiz Karanka about what was happening.
Every time the coach talks everything is blown out of proportion, Karanka said.
He (Mourinho) doesnt want his words blown out of proportion and he doesnt want to be the one who raises the temperature ahead of the match, the former Real player added. Its just one way that we have of working.
Mourinho has frequently clashed with the media during his coaching career and has angered journalists in Spain since his arrival by cutting back on their access to players and training.
Asked about Mourinhos conduct at a later news conference, Barca coach Pep Guardiola said everyone behaved in the way they believed was most beneficial for their team.
Neither he nor I do anything that has not been done before by other people, added Guardiola, who was a Barca player when Mourinho was assistant coach there in the 1990s.
Barcelona captain Carles Puyols recovery from a knee injury has progressed sufficiently for him to be included in the squad to face Real Madrid at the Bernabeu.
The Spain central defender, who turned 33 on Thursday, has not played since 22nd January and his return would be a major boost for Pep Guardiolas side as they seek to extend their eight-point lead over second-placed Real.
He (Puyol) said that the discomfort has almost disappeared and that he no longer has any pain, Guardiola said yesterday. We included him in the squad and tomorrow well make a decision.
Barcelona are missing defender Eric Abidal with a liver ailment, striker Bojan Krkic is out for the season with a knee injury while midfielder Javier Mascherano, who has been filling in at centre back recently, is suspended.
Barca can take a giant stride towards securing a third straight title with a win in tonight's game, the first of an unprecedented four meetings with arch rivals Real in three competitions in 18 day.
IF YOU KNOW YOUR HISTORY . . . FIVE KEY GAMES
May 13th, 1902 – Real 1 Barca 3
Barca drew first blood in what was to become one of the most intense club rivalries in world football. The Catalans triumphed over the Castilians in a game marking the coronation of King Alfonso XIII at Madrid's Estadio Hipodromo. Swiss Joan Gamper, who founded FC Barcelona three years earlier, netted one of Barca's goals.
June 21st, 1936 – Real 2 Barca 1
Less than a month before Spain was plunged into a brutal civil war, Real edged the first meeting between the pair in a Spanish Cup final. With the country divided, Barca president Josep Sunyol was assassinated by Franco forces two months later and many Barca players chose not to return from a tour to Mexico the following year.
Nov 23rd, 1960 – Barca 2 Real 1
With Alfredo di Stefano leading the charge, Real triumphed in the first five European Cups between 1956 and 1960 but it was Barca who became the first team to claim their scalp in the competition a year later. The pair drew their last-16 first leg at the Bernabeu 2-2 before Barca won the second leg at their Nou Camp arena 2-1.
Jan 20th, 1994 – Barca 5 Real 0
Dutch great Johan Cruyff led Barca to their first European Cup triumph in 1992 and they emphasised their dominance over Real during the early 1990s with a crushing 5-0 league drubbing of the Madrid club at the Camp Nou , Brazil striker Romario netting a hat-trick. Catalan joy was relatively shortlived as Real beat them 5-0 at the Bernabeu the following season, thanks largely to an Ivan Zamorano treble.
May 2nd, 2009 – Real 2 Barca 6
As a player, Cruyff inspired Barca to what is still their biggest win at the Bernabeu, a 5-0 success in February 1974. But it was Barca's 6-2 victory there in their treble-winning season in 2008/09 that really sticks in the throat of the modern generation of Real fans and confirmed coach Pep Guardiola was a force to be reckoned with. Thierry Henry and Lionel Messi scored twice, with central defenders Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique adding a goal each. Puyol celebrated his goal by tearing off and passionately kissing his captains armband in the colours of the Catalan flag to drive the point home.
CLASICO ENCOUNTER THREE HEAD-TO-HEADS
Lionel Messi v Cristiano Ronaldo
World player of the year Messi (29 goals) and former holder Ronaldo (28) are the leading goalscorers in La Liga this season by some distance.
Their styles are very different. Messi plays with schoolboy enthusiasm, making darting runs and exchanging quick passes with team-mates.
Ronaldo is more of a showman, charging down the pitch and using his athleticism to leave opponents trailing. His powerful, swerving free-kicks are a threat from any range.
David Villa v Karim Benzema
Spain's Villa and France's Benzema lead the line for their teams but, unusually, are not the top scorers.
Villa arrived from Valencia for €40 million last summer and he quickly settled in with his Spanish international team-mates, although he has not found the net in his last nine matches.
Benzema had a poor start to the campaign but exploded into life in January when Gonzalo Higuain's back injury gave him a chance. He has scored 10 in La Liga and 21 in all competitions but has been out of action for the last two weeks.
Xavi v Xabi Alonso
The Spain midfielders, who operate in slightly different roles, are considered irreplaceable.
Playmaker Xavi, 31, is the heart of Barca and Spain's possession-based football and covers a huge amount of ground in a match, linking up play and creating chances alongside Andres Iniesta.
Former Liverpool player Alonso, 29, is more defensive, playing alongside Sami Khedira in a holding role at Real, but his passes, especially balls from deep in his own half to launch counter-attacks, are a major feature of his side's play.
