I reckon Jose is going to be on the market.

[remoh]

Well it doesn't seem to be Italian. I'd be happy with O'Neill, personally.

Then you have your own issues to deal with and shouldn't really inflict them on others.

Well, If snide is all you can be, I'll take it that you've surrendered on this one.

 

[taconinja]

Then you have your own issues to deal with and shouldn't really inflict them on others.

Well, If snide is all you can be, I'll take it that you've surrendered on this one.

No, but if you want to choose a mid-level manager then there's really no fathoming your criteria.

 

[LoveCity]

He's lost the plot this time.

José Mourinho effectively accused Uefa of fixing it for Barcelona to reach the Champions League final after his Real Madrid team were beaten 2-0 at home by their fiercest rivals in an ugly and controversy-filled first leg of their semi-final.

Mourinho claimed it was "impossible" for Madrid to defeat the dark forces lined up against them after a night on which he and his defender Pepe were sent off. Two goals by Lionel Messi followed those dismissals to leave Barça on the verge of the final, where they look certain to meet Manchester United.

Madrid's coach accused Barcelona of wielding untouchable power in European football and insisted their coach, Pep Guardiola, should feel "ashamed" if he wins a competition that "yet again" is engulfed in "scandal". Barcelona also had a man sent off, their substitute goalkeeper, José Pinto, for his role in a mass brawl as the teams left the field at half-time. The incident was one of numerous flashpoints.

"One day," Mourinho said, pointedly using the Barcelona coach's full name, "I would like Josep Guardiola to win this competition properly." That was a reference to the controversial semi-final victory of Guardiola's team over Chelsea en route to their triumph in 2009.

Mourinho, who has had a player sent off in all four meetings with Barcelona this season and with Internazionale in last season's semi-final, said that he did not want to say what he "really thinks" because he feared a life ban but he did insist he felt "disgusted" to be working in football. In the end, there was little holding back. The accusation was hardly a veiled one.

Mourinho claimed his red card and that handed to Pepe were unjustified and that this was not the first time Barcelona's opponents have been singled out for unfair punishment. He reeled off a list of referees whom he said had "favoured" the Catalan side, pointing an accusing finger at those who he sees as engaged in a pro‑Barça conspiracy. He insisted that the evidence is unavoidable and asked: "Why?"

"If I tell Uefa what I really think and feel, my career would end now," Mourinho said. "Instead, I will just ask a question to which I hope one day to get a response: why? Why? Why Ovrebo? Why Busacca? Why De Bleeckere? Why Stark? Why? Because every semi-final the same things happen. We are talking about an absolutely fantastic football team, so why do they need that? Why? Why does a team as good as they are need something [extra] that is so obvious that everyone sees it?

"Why Ovrebo [two] years ago [when the Norwegian referee did not give Chelsea a series of penalties against Barcelona]? Why couldn't Chelsea go to the final? Last year it was a miracle that Inter got there playing with 10 men for so long. A miracle. Why weren't there four penalties against Chelsea [in 2009]? Why send off [Arsenal's Robin] Van Persie [in the last 16]? Where does their power come from?

"It could have been 0-0 tonight, but then suddenly we are down to 10 men and they have a free path to find solutions that they could not find before then: we could have played for three hours and they would not have scored. But today we have seen that it is not difficult – it is impossible.

"The question," Mourinho continued, "is why? I don't know if it is the Unicef sponsorship or if it is because they are nice guys. I don't understand. Congratulations to Barcelona on being a great team and congratulations for all the other stuff you have which must be very hard to achieve. They have power and we have no chance. Chelsea had bans for Drogba and Bosingwa; Wenger and Nasri were banned for Arsenal; me today. I don't know why. All I can do is leave that question here in the air and hope that one day I will get the response. They have to get to the final, and they'll get there, full stop."

Asked if Madrid, trailing 2-0, were now out, Mourinho replied simply: "Yes, yes." There was a pause and then he added: "We will go there with pride and respect for football. It is a world that sometimes disgusts me to live in and earn a living from, but it is my world. We have to go there without Pepe, who didn't do anything, without [the suspended] Ramos who did nothing, without a coach who can't be on the bench. It is impossible. And if we score a goal and open up the tie a little, they will just kill it again. Tonight we have seen that we do not have any chance."

Mourinho sought to discredit Barcelona's 2009 Champions League success and any victory they may have this season.

"Josep Guardiola is a fantastic coach," he said, "but I have won two Champions Leagues. He has won [only] one Champions League and that is one that would embarrass me. I would be ashamed to have won it with the scandal of Stamford Bridge and if he wins it this year it will be with the scandal of the Bernabéu. I hope that one day he can win a proper Champions League. Deep down, if they are good people, it cannot taste right for them. I hope one day Guardiola has the chance of winning a brilliant, clean championship with no scandal".

 

[BobKowalski]

Then you have your own issues to deal with and shouldn't really inflict them on others.

Well, If snide is all you can be, I'll take it that you've surrendered on this one.

I think he just lost interest with your choice of O'Neill.

If I was you I'd quit and try and reattach the foot you just shot off

 

[hilts]

He's lost the plot this time.

José Mourinho effectively accused Uefa of fixing it for Barcelona to reach the Champions League final after his Real Madrid team were beaten 2-0 at home by their fiercest rivals in an ugly and controversy-filled first leg of their semi-final.

Mourinho claimed it was "impossible" for Madrid to defeat the dark forces lined up against them after a night on which he and his defender Pepe were sent off. Two goals by Lionel Messi followed those dismissals to leave Barça on the verge of the final, where they look certain to meet Manchester United.

Madrid's coach accused Barcelona of wielding untouchable power in European football and insisted their coach, Pep Guardiola, should feel "ashamed" if he wins a competition that "yet again" is engulfed in "scandal". Barcelona also had a man sent off, their substitute goalkeeper, José Pinto, for his role in a mass brawl as the teams left the field at half-time. The incident was one of numerous flashpoints.

"One day," Mourinho said, pointedly using the Barcelona coach's full name, "I would like Josep Guardiola to win this competition properly." That was a reference to the controversial semi-final victory of Guardiola's team over Chelsea en route to their triumph in 2009.

Mourinho, who has had a player sent off in all four meetings with Barcelona this season and with Internazionale in last season's semi-final, said that he did not want to say what he "really thinks" because he feared a life ban but he did insist he felt "disgusted" to be working in football. In the end, there was little holding back. The accusation was hardly a veiled one.

Mourinho claimed his red card and that handed to Pepe were unjustified and that this was not the first time Barcelona's opponents have been singled out for unfair punishment. He reeled off a list of referees whom he said had "favoured" the Catalan side, pointing an accusing finger at those who he sees as engaged in a pro‑Barça conspiracy. He insisted that the evidence is unavoidable and asked: "Why?"

"If I tell Uefa what I really think and feel, my career would end now," Mourinho said. "Instead, I will just ask a question to which I hope one day to get a response: why? Why? Why Ovrebo? Why Busacca? Why De Bleeckere? Why Stark? Why? Because every semi-final the same things happen. We are talking about an absolutely fantastic football team, so why do they need that? Why? Why does a team as good as they are need something [extra] that is so obvious that everyone sees it?

"Why Ovrebo [two] years ago [when the Norwegian referee did not give Chelsea a series of penalties against Barcelona]? Why couldn't Chelsea go to the final? Last year it was a miracle that Inter got there playing with 10 men for so long. A miracle. Why weren't there four penalties against Chelsea [in 2009]? Why send off [Arsenal's Robin] Van Persie [in the last 16]? Where does their power come from?

"It could have been 0-0 tonight, but then suddenly we are down to 10 men and they have a free path to find solutions that they could not find before then: we could have played for three hours and they would not have scored. But today we have seen that it is not difficult – it is impossible.

"The question," Mourinho continued, "is why? I don't know if it is the Unicef sponsorship or if it is because they are nice guys. I don't understand. Congratulations to Barcelona on being a great team and congratulations for all the other stuff you have which must be very hard to achieve. They have power and we have no chance. Chelsea had bans for Drogba and Bosingwa; Wenger and Nasri were banned for Arsenal; me today. I don't know why. All I can do is leave that question here in the air and hope that one day I will get the response. They have to get to the final, and they'll get there, full stop."

Asked if Madrid, trailing 2-0, were now out, Mourinho replied simply: "Yes, yes." There was a pause and then he added: "We will go there with pride and respect for football. It is a world that sometimes disgusts me to live in and earn a living from, but it is my world. We have to go there without Pepe, who didn't do anything, without [the suspended] Ramos who did nothing, without a coach who can't be on the bench. It is impossible. And if we score a goal and open up the tie a little, they will just kill it again. Tonight we have seen that we do not have any chance."

Mourinho sought to discredit Barcelona's 2009 Champions League success and any victory they may have this season.

"Josep Guardiola is a fantastic coach," he said, "but I have won two Champions Leagues. He has won [only] one Champions League and that is one that would embarrass me. I would be ashamed to have won it with the scandal of Stamford Bridge and if he wins it this year it will be with the scandal of the Bernabéu. I hope that one day he can win a proper Champions League. Deep down, if they are good people, it cannot taste right for them. I hope one day Guardiola has the chance of winning a brilliant, clean championship with no scandal".

brilliant, he never misses a trick

 

[BobKowalski]

He's lost the plot this time.

José Mourinho effectively accused Uefa of fixing it for Barcelona to reach the Champions League final after his Real Madrid team were beaten 2-0 at home by their fiercest rivals in an ugly and controversy-filled first leg of their semi-final.

Mourinho claimed it was "impossible" for Madrid to defeat the dark forces lined up against them after a night on which he and his defender Pepe were sent off. Two goals by Lionel Messi followed those dismissals to leave Barça on the verge of the final, where they look certain to meet Manchester United.

Madrid's coach accused Barcelona of wielding untouchable power in European football and insisted their coach, Pep Guardiola, should feel "ashamed" if he wins a competition that "yet again" is engulfed in "scandal". Barcelona also had a man sent off, their substitute goalkeeper, José Pinto, for his role in a mass brawl as the teams left the field at half-time. The incident was one of numerous flashpoints.

"One day," Mourinho said, pointedly using the Barcelona coach's full name, "I would like Josep Guardiola to win this competition properly." That was a reference to the controversial semi-final victory of Guardiola's team over Chelsea en route to their triumph in 2009.

Mourinho, who has had a player sent off in all four meetings with Barcelona this season and with Internazionale in last season's semi-final, said that he did not want to say what he "really thinks" because he feared a life ban but he did insist he felt "disgusted" to be working in football. In the end, there was little holding back. The accusation was hardly a veiled one.

Mourinho claimed his red card and that handed to Pepe were unjustified and that this was not the first time Barcelona's opponents have been singled out for unfair punishment. He reeled off a list of referees whom he said had "favoured" the Catalan side, pointing an accusing finger at those who he sees as engaged in a pro‑Barça conspiracy. He insisted that the evidence is unavoidable and asked: "Why?"

"If I tell Uefa what I really think and feel, my career would end now," Mourinho said. "Instead, I will just ask a question to which I hope one day to get a response: why? Why? Why Ovrebo? Why Busacca? Why De Bleeckere? Why Stark? Why? Because every semi-final the same things happen. We are talking about an absolutely fantastic football team, so why do they need that? Why? Why does a team as good as they are need something [extra] that is so obvious that everyone sees it?

"Why Ovrebo [two] years ago [when the Norwegian referee did not give Chelsea a series of penalties against Barcelona]? Why couldn't Chelsea go to the final? Last year it was a miracle that Inter got there playing with 10 men for so long. A miracle. Why weren't there four penalties against Chelsea [in 2009]? Why send off [Arsenal's Robin] Van Persie [in the last 16]? Where does their power come from?

"It could have been 0-0 tonight, but then suddenly we are down to 10 men and they have a free path to find solutions that they could not find before then: we could have played for three hours and they would not have scored. But today we have seen that it is not difficult – it is impossible.

"The question," Mourinho continued, "is why? I don't know if it is the Unicef sponsorship or if it is because they are nice guys. I don't understand. Congratulations to Barcelona on being a great team and congratulations for all the other stuff you have which must be very hard to achieve. They have power and we have no chance. Chelsea had bans for Drogba and Bosingwa; Wenger and Nasri were banned for Arsenal; me today. I don't know why. All I can do is leave that question here in the air and hope that one day I will get the response. They have to get to the final, and they'll get there, full stop."

Asked if Madrid, trailing 2-0, were now out, Mourinho replied simply: "Yes, yes." There was a pause and then he added: "We will go there with pride and respect for football. It is a world that sometimes disgusts me to live in and earn a living from, but it is my world. We have to go there without Pepe, who didn't do anything, without [the suspended] Ramos who did nothing, without a coach who can't be on the bench. It is impossible. And if we score a goal and open up the tie a little, they will just kill it again. Tonight we have seen that we do not have any chance."

Mourinho sought to discredit Barcelona's 2009 Champions League success and any victory they may have this season.

"Josep Guardiola is a fantastic coach," he said, "but I have won two Champions Leagues. He has won [only] one Champions League and that is one that would embarrass me. I would be ashamed to have won it with the scandal of Stamford Bridge and if he wins it this year it will be with the scandal of the Bernabéu. I hope that one day he can win a proper Champions League. Deep down, if they are good people, it cannot taste right for them. I hope one day Guardiola has the chance of winning a brilliant, clean championship with no scandal".

Lost the plot no. Its calculated and deliberate. He is cranking up the siege mentality for next season when he and the team will be on a mission to hunt Barca down by any and all means possible. The fans are also buying into the 'we were cheated' line and seem to be backing Jose which is another reason why I think he will get another season.

 

[hilts]

He's lost the plot this time.

Lost the plot no. Its calculated and deliberate. He is cranking up the siege mentality for next season when he and the team will be on a mission to hunt Barca down by any and all means possible. The fans are also buying into the 'we were cheated' line and seem to be backing Jose which is another reason why I think he will get another season.

bingo

 

[Mr.Mancini]

I dont understand why anyone would want him here. I mean, i love the guy. He is possinly the best manager on the planet. But we allready have a great manager in mancini. It makes by blood boil when people on here suggest we replace Richards and Barry and zaba for the liles of 'Iniesta & Xavi.' If united can get to the champions league final with an awfull squad like that, then with our squad, im sure we can, rant over. If our owners have any senxe at all they wont go on stupid spendig spree's and Mancini will be here for years to come

 

[taconinja]

Lost the plot no. Its calculated and deliberate. He is cranking up the siege mentality for next season when he and the team will be on a mission to hunt Barca down by any and all means possible. The fans are also buying into the 'we were cheated' line and seem to be backing Jose which is another reason why I think he will get another season.

Wonder if he could have cranked it up to the point of pissing off UEFA enough to give Real a 1-year ban from European competition.

 

[BobKowalski]

Lost the plot no. Its calculated and deliberate. He is cranking up the siege mentality for next season when he and the team will be on a mission to hunt Barca down by any and all means possible. The fans are also buying into the 'we were cheated' line and seem to be backing Jose which is another reason why I think he will get another season.

Wonder if he could have cranked it up to the point of pissing off UEFA enough to give Real a 1-year ban from European competition.

Jose would love that, his martyr complex would OD on that level of attention...hell he would create his own religion and canonise himself as a saint whilst wandering the streets of Madrid urging his followers to the Church of Bernabéu and denouncing the evil minions of UEFA and his arch nemesis the one known as Pep and still find time to coach the team.

 

[Damocles]

so the secret to prem success is scottish.

Well it doesn't seem to be Italian. I'd be happy with O'Neill, personally.

Zola - Kept West Ham up under mass board strife
Mancini - FA Cup Final, probable CL finish
Carlo - Prem winner, FA Cup winner
Vialli - FA Cup winner, Chelsea's second most successful manager ever.
Ranieri - Second place in PL, highest ever CFCfinish

Italians man for man, have won more trophies post 1992 than any other nationality in England.

Basically, you didn't really think that one through

 

[TheMightyQuinn]

Well it doesn't seem to be Italian. I'd be happy with O'Neill, personally.

Zola - Kept West Ham up under mass board strife
Mancini - FA Cup Final, probable CL finish
Carlo - Prem winner, FA Cup winner
Vialli - FA Cup winner, Chelsea's second most successful manager ever.
Ranieri - Second place in PL, highest ever CFCfinish

Italians man for man, have won more trophies post 1992 than any other nationality in England.

Basically, you didn't really think that one through

Yeah but how many men called Roberto have ever won a trophy managing a team with a midfielder called Gareth and a forward called Mario?

Answer: Fucking none, get rid.

 

[Viva Rivaldo]

José Mourinho rages at 'plot' to put Barcelona in the final

Sid Lowe at the Bernabéu
The Guardian,
Thursday 28 April 2011

José Mourinho effectively accused Uefa of fixing it for Barcelona to reach the Champions League final after his Real Madrid team were beaten 2-0 at home by their fiercest rivals in an ugly and controversy-filled first leg of their semi-final.

Mourinho claimed it was "impossible" for Madrid to defeat the dark forces lined up against them after a night on which he and his defender Pepe were sent off. Two goals by Lionel Messi followed those dismissals to leave Barça on the verge of the final, where they look certain to meet Manchester United.

Madrid's coach accused Barcelona of wielding untouchable power in European football and insisted their coach, Pep Guardiola, should feel "ashamed" if he wins a competition that "yet again" is engulfed in "scandal". Barcelona also had a man sent off, their substitute goalkeeper, José Pinto, for his role in a mass brawl as the teams left the field at half-time. The incident was one of numerous flashpoints.

"One day," Mourinho said, pointedly using the Barcelona coach's full name, "I would like Josep Guardiola to win this competition properly." That was a reference to the controversial semi-final victory of Guardiola's team over Chelsea en route to their triumph in 2009.

Mourinho, who has had a player sent off in all four meetings with Barcelona this season and with Internazionale in last season's semi-final, said that he did not want to say what he "really thinks" because he feared a life ban but he did insist he felt "disgusted" to be working in football. In the end, there was little holding back. The accusation was hardly a veiled one.

Mourinho claimed his red card and that handed to Pepe were unjustified and that this was not the first time Barcelona's opponents have been singled out for unfair punishment. He reeled off a list of referees whom he said had "favoured" the Catalan side, pointing an accusing finger at those who he sees as engaged in a pro‑Barça conspiracy. He insisted that the evidence is unavoidable and asked: "Why?"

"If I tell Uefa what I really think and feel, my career would end now," Mourinho said. "Instead, I will just ask a question to which I hope one day to get a response: why? Why? Why Ovrebo? Why Busacca? Why De Bleeckere? Why Stark? Why? Because every semi-final the same things happen. We are talking about an absolutely fantastic football team, so why do they need that? Why? Why does a team as good as they are need something [extra] that is so obvious that everyone sees it?

"Why Ovrebo [two] years ago [when the Norwegian referee did not give Chelsea a series of penalties against Barcelona]? Why couldn't Chelsea go to the final? Last year it was a miracle that Inter got there playing with 10 men for so long. A miracle. Why weren't there four penalties against Chelsea [in 2009]? Why send off [Arsenal's Robin] Van Persie [in the last 16]? Where does their power come from?

"It could have been 0-0 tonight, but then suddenly we are down to 10 men and they have a free path to find solutions that they could not find before then: we could have played for three hours and they would not have scored. But today we have seen that it is not difficult – it is impossible.

"The question," Mourinho continued, "is why? I don't know if it is the Unicef sponsorship or if it is because they are nice guys. I don't understand. Congratulations to Barcelona on being a great team and congratulations for all the other stuff you have which must be very hard to achieve. They have power and we have no chance. Chelsea had bans for Drogba and Bosingwa; Wenger and Nasri were banned for Arsenal; me today. I don't know why. All I can do is leave that question here in the air and hope that one day I will get the response. They have to get to the final, and they'll get there, full stop."

Asked if Madrid, trailing 2-0, were now out, Mourinho replied simply: "Yes, yes." There was a pause and then he added: "We will go there with pride and respect for football. It is a world that sometimes disgusts me to live in and earn a living from, but it is my world. We have to go there without Pepe, who didn't do anything, without [the suspended] Ramos who did nothing, without a coach who can't be on the bench. It is impossible. And if we score a goal and open up the tie a little, they will just kill it again. Tonight we have seen that we do not have any chance."

Mourinho sought to discredit Barcelona's 2009 Champions League success and any victory they may have this season.

"Josep Guardiola is a fantastic coach," he said, "but I have won two Champions Leagues. He has won [only] one Champions League and that is one that would embarrass me. I would be ashamed to have won it with the scandal of Stamford Bridge and if he wins it this year it will be with the scandal of the Bernabéu. I hope that one day he can win a proper Champions League. Deep down, if they are good people, it cannot taste right for them. I hope one day Guardiola has the chance of winning a brilliant, clean championship with no scandal".

Apologies if posted elsewhere, but it's worth a read.

 

[taconinja]

Wonder if he could have cranked it up to the point of pissing off UEFA enough to give Real a 1-year ban from European competition.

Jose would love that, his martyr complex would OD on that level of attention...hell he would create his own religion and canonise himself as a saint whilst wandering the streets of Madrid urging his followers to the Church of Bernabéu and denouncing the evil minions of UEFA and his arch nemesis the one known as Pep and still find time to coach the team.

I... want this to happen so badly now.

 

[VinceYoungisaBLUE]

holy shit... jose is pissed...

 

[TheMightyQuinn]

"It could have been 0-0 tonight, but then suddenly we are down to 10 men and they have a free path to find solutions that they could not find before then: we could have played for three hours and they would not have scored. But today we have seen that it is not difficult – it is impossible.

I know you're a rag but can you imagine the outrage if Mancini came out after a derby defeat in a semi final and said that?

He's basically saying that with 11 men and no dodgy decision then he'd have got a 0-0 draw and presumably would have been happy. 0-0 at their place, cross your fingers and win on pens.

 

[Viva Rivaldo]

"It could have been 0-0 tonight, but then suddenly we are down to 10 men and they have a free path to find solutions that they could not find before then: we could have played for three hours and they would not have scored. But today we have seen that it is not difficult – it is impossible.

I know you're a rag but can you imagine the outrage if Mancini came out after a derby defeat in a semi final and said that?

He's basically saying that with 11 men and no dodgy decision then he'd have got a 0-0 draw and presumably would have been happy. 0-0 at their place, cross your fingers and win on pens.

Yeah, I've always been a fan of Mourinho, but whilst his recent press conferences have been funny and bold, he has come off as a bit of a bellend. I thought he was just taking the flak for his players at first, but the fact he basically conceded the second leg there and then by admitting that Barcelona were in the final already...it's incredibly defeatist, and, dare I say it, not very good management.

 

[TheMightyQuinn]

I know you're a rag but can you imagine the outrage if Mancini came out after a derby defeat in a semi final and said that?

He's basically saying that with 11 men and no dodgy decision then he'd have got a 0-0 draw and presumably would have been happy. 0-0 at their place, cross your fingers and win on pens.

Yeah, I've always been a fan of Mourinho, but whilst his recent press conferences have been funny and bold, he has come off as a bit of a bellend. I thought he was just taking the flak for his players at first, but the fact he basically conceded the second leg there and then by admitting that Barcelona were in the final already...it's incredibly defeatist, and, dare I say it, not very good management.

Can't argue with his record. I usually like ego maniacs as they're interesting and amusing in equal measure but I've never really got Jose, not properly.

Just struck me as quite ironic that those on here who hate Mancini would claim he wants to draw every game 0-0 yet Jose appears to be lamenting the fact that had things not gone wrong he could have triumphed tonight...with a 0-0 draw.

It could be a slight translation problem but that doesn't normally stop the Mancini bashers so fuck it.

 

[Somud]

I know you're a rag but can you imagine the outrage if Mancini came out after a derby defeat in a semi final and said that?

He's basically saying that with 11 men and no dodgy decision then he'd have got a 0-0 draw and presumably would have been happy. 0-0 at their place, cross your fingers and win on pens.

Yeah, I've always been a fan of Mourinho, but whilst his recent press conferences have been funny and bold, he has come off as a bit of a bellend. I thought he was just taking the flak for his players at first, but the fact he basically conceded the second leg there and then by admitting that Barcelona were in the final already...it's incredibly defeatist, and, dare I say it, not very good management.

Mourinho knows he has to play the role of his team being cheated to have a chance of not getting sacked. 3 DMs, 30 pct posession and no chances at home in europe. It wont go down well in madrid unless he can make it difficult to get sacked by trying to give his team the victim role.

 

[Viva Rivaldo]

Yeah, I've always been a fan of Mourinho, but whilst his recent press conferences have been funny and bold, he has come off as a bit of a bellend. I thought he was just taking the flak for his players at first, but the fact he basically conceded the second leg there and then by admitting that Barcelona were in the final already...it's incredibly defeatist, and, dare I say it, not very good management.

Can't argue with his record. I usually like ego maniacs as they're interesting and amusing in equal measure but I've never really got Jose, not properly.

Just struck me as quite ironic that those on here who hate Mancini would claim he wants to draw every game 0-0 yet Jose appears to be lamenting the fact that had things not gone wrong he could have triumphed tonight...with a 0-0 draw.

It could be a slight translation problem but that doesn't normally stop the Mancini bashers so fuck it.

As a wise old Scotsman once said; "Sometimes you look in a field and you see a cow and you think it's a better cow than the one you've got in your own field...it never really works out that way."

There's always going to be people that complain and demand change when things aren't going their way - cf. the 'Fergie Out' brigade - but at the time, they never appreciate how good they've got it.

Mourinho knows he has to play the role of his team being cheated to have a chance of not getting sacked. 3 DMs, 30 pct posession and no chances at home in europe. It wont go down well in madrid unless he can make it difficult to get sacked by trying to give his team the victim role.

That's an interesting theory, but I'm not so sure. I think he's genuinely more concerned about the loss of face he's suffering, and the hit on his pride. He couldn't give two tosses about Real Madrid; there will always be somebody there to hand him a huge paycheck, and I doubt he has any fear of being sacked.

There's no adequate replacement for him. Not many managers would have done what he's done this season. Admittedly, he's not achieved anything remarkable, but he's not been a failure. First silverware of the current Perez regime, semi finals of the Champions League (at least) bowing out to the likely winners...not really worthy of the sack, surely?

Though the manner of defeat might be what you meant; the fact that he played defensively and, as TheMightyQuinn said above, he would have been happy with a 0-0 at home. Surely the Madrid fans, who still view their club as the biggest in world football, would not have been content with that? But what do they expect, it's Mourinho.