PREVIEW SEMI-FINAL FIRST LEG Real Madrid v Barcelona:THIS TIME it's personal. Barcelona's coach, Josep Guardiola, last night finally exploded, sending a year of pent-up anger gushing forth as he responded to Jose Mourinho on the eve of the Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid.
The question now is whether Mourinho will feel that he has won the mental battle, dragging Guardiola into territory that is not his own, or if Guardiola will feel a release at having had his say. The days of a respectful silence, of turning the other cheek, are over. This was more like the aggressive weigh-in before a prize fight.
Mourinho had pricked Guardiola’s pride once too often by accusing him of complaining about referees who get decisions right. It was an accusation that Guardiola was not prepared to let pass – the last straw.
Mourinho had provoked Guardiola by referring to comments his rival made after Madrid’s victory in the Copa del Rey final last week. Guardiola had noted that his side had been close to winning: had a Pedro goal not been ruled out for a very close but correct offside, described by the coach as “the linesman’s good eyesight”, Barcelona might have taken the trophy.
“A new era has begun,” Mourinho said yesterday. “Until now there were two groups of coaches. One very small group of coaches that don’t speak about refs and then a big group of coaches, of which I am part, who criticise the refs when they have mistakes – people like me who don’t control their frustration but also people who are happy to value a great job from a ref.
“Now there is a third group, which is only (Guardiola), that criticises referees when they get decisions right! There is a new meaning to (football) now. In his first season (Guardiola) lived the scandal of Stamford Bridge (in the semi-final), last year he played against a 10-man Inter. Now he is not happy with refs getting it right.”
Guardiola wasn’t shy about defending himself, launching into a 45-minute broadside at the Real coach. He said: “Tomorrow at 8.45 we will play a match on the field. Outside of the field, he has won the entire year, the entire season and in the future (it will be the same). He can have his personal Champions League outside the field. But this is a game. When it comes to sport we will play and sometimes we will win, sometimes we will lose. We are happy with smaller victories, trying to get the world to admire us and we are very proud of this.
“I can give you an immense list of things (that we could complain about). We could remember Stamford Bridge and another thousand things but I do not have that many people working for me. Secretaries and referees and people writing stuff. So tomorrow, we will try to play football as best as possible. In this room (Real Madrid’s press room), he is the chief, the f**king man. In here he is the f**king man and I can’t compete with him. If Barcelona want someone who competes with that, then they should look for another manager.
“I always thought that when people didn’t understand me, it was because I had explained myself badly, but now I don’t. I said the referee (in the cup final) had been very attentive. I said it was right. I pointed out simply that the result can be down to small things, that’s all. It was not a complaint. After victory I congratulated Real Madrid and that is what Barcelona does. We congratulated RM for the cup that they won on the field.”
Asked if this was just a tactic, Guardiola replied: “What? You think my players will run around more because I looked for Mourinho’s camera? It’s a semi-final!”
Guardiola’s mood will not have been improved by the news that midfielder Andres Iniesta will miss the game (calf injury). His small squad is already lacking a slew of defenders – Eric Abidal, Maxwell and Adriano are all out – with Carles Puyol and Gabriel Milito struggling to be fit. Mourinho in contrast has almost a full squad to choose from, missing only the suspended Ricardo Carvalho and the injured Sami Khedira.
Guardian Service
