As Barca limbers up for its serial encounters with its arch rival, I thought it worth commenting on the rather worrying urban myth that has been fuelled in recent times by Real Madrid fanatics.
Out of respect to both sporting institutions, and weary of falling foul of libel laws, I will have to phrase this as delicately as I can-but suffice it to say that the quite unsubstantiated and untrue suggestion is that Barca has only managed to have got to where it has got to-record results across three major competitions with minimum renewal of the squad and extraordinary endurance by some of its key players- thanks to some imagined help, not necessarily in the form of Divine intervention.
Now not only does this taste of sour grapes (and clearly false) but also demonstrates a lack of understanding of human psychology. Any team is stimulated by success, not least when it is achieved not by any one individual but by the balance and variety of talented individuals working for each other and the collective spirit that this generates. One for all and all for one. Moreover teams can be inspired by managers who are worthy of respect themselves and solution focused.
A bit of history may be worth recalling here. The arrival in 1958 of Helenio Herrera as Barca’s new manager marked the beginning of one of the most dynamic periods in the club’s history. During his stint at the club, Herrera took the team and shook it to its roots. He used his powers of psychology to motivate a club that all too often had stumbled under the burden of its own history, too easily believing that games were won or lost at the bequest of a conspiratorial government, or poor referee, rather than because of the relative strength of the competing teams (Barca vs. Real Madrid).
The ensuing transformation in the way that Barca saw itself and confronted every match was such as to raise suspicions beyond Catalonia. There was talk of trickery, secret rituals, and drugs. Some of the more hostile journalists even dubbed Herrera the “pharmacy cup coach.” The suggestion was that the team’s medical staff had their bags stuffed with every conceivable performance-enhancing substance. It was all nonsense of course.
But I suspect we are in for a great deal of psychology in the comings days, and not all of it positive, as well as some extremely competitive football. It’s thus going to take, once again, all of Pep Guardiola’s genius as a tactician and motivator to bring the best out of his team if Barca is to hold off what I believe is Mourinho’s and his team’s ultimate double ambition: a win at the Bernabeu on Saturday before reaching Wembley and conquering. Both sides know that in a season like this one, winning the Copa Del Rey only will provide a consolation prize. And let us not forget that it is Mourinho not Guardiola that is the Special One or so the Portuguese once claimed.
What disappoints me about Cule’s is their fanaticism and Distortion, and even negation, of The Truth. Let me reply to some points raised in your last blog:
– – “Conspiratorial government”, Jimmy, do you mean here that Franco fixed games? Well he sure fixed them well…..for Barcelona, as during Herrara’s 3 short years as manager of the Cule’s, they only won the following: 2 Ligas, 1 Fairs Cup and 1 Copa Generalissimo. About time your Catalan myths were well buried, well buried by the FACTS.
– “The Special One” was the term given to Mourinho by the British press after his first press conference as manager of Chelsea and NOT the Portuguese press. Another error from the Cule camp.
I just get the impression Cules are scared of the imminent serial marathon. As I said before, you can keep La Liga, but the Copa del Rey will be watched by 100’s of millions as will the Champions semi. But then maybe Barça will clinch it because the run further and faster and longer……..
Carlos: You willl accuse me of censorship but out of respect for international law and the generally civilised comments I would like to keep to on this site I have rejected two earlier submissions from you today and toned down this one. It is still pretty rude but then you seem to have spent too much time supporting your team Chelsea in Stamford Bridge. As for Mourinho-let me give you a more updated quote, from his own mouth this week “The Champions League has an affair with me.”
– “An affair with me”: well he is right! The genious has had more affairs these last 10 years with this wonderful competition than anyone else. Admit it, you are chicken scared of facing him as he will outwit Guardiola. All he has said today is that if he has 11 men on the pitch, he will beat Barça, as with 10 or less, you would never keep up with Barça who just keep on running, and running, and running……
with all due respect, Mr Carlos, i wonder if you support chelsea or madrid or just mourinho.
i’m a barca fan living in england. i get alienated out of football discussions because i don’t support any english teams. i guess they maybe right but i don’t need to support any other team other than my own i can only admire a few teams in terms of their football. i didn’t grow up supporting barca in england and neither was i in spain. but i would still go out wearing my barca colors, even it meant getting the awkward stare or two from other football fans.
when i was a kid playing football for my school, our coach once told us “in a club many people come and go and no one is bigger than the institution.” a simple quote that i’ve applied to football and virtually everything else.
so to support a person rather than the institution itself (solely) is not my idea of loyalty.
and for once don’t you have anything nice to say?