Former colleague Avram Grant expects Real Madrid to change the football philosophy of Jose Mourinho. The new West Ham manager was asked if he had a strained relationship with the Special One whilst at Chelsea and then went on to elaborate on the changes he thinks will occur at the Bernabeu:
“I enjoyed working with him. He is a good person, an organised coach, who knows how to use technology in football and has the capacity to analyse the games…Everyone knows that if you sign Jose you have one certain style of football. His Chelsea played good football in general. I mean, they had a way of dealing with games and tournaments. Mourinho likes to defend, he feels good that way. And we know that he will not be able to do that at the Bernabeu. I would not say that Mourinho will change their philosophy in Madrid, but Madrid will, in the end, change the philosophy of Mourinho.”
Real Madrid is a club steeped in historical prestige; the mid 50s and 60s saw Puskas and Di Stefano in a team that virtually monopolised the European Cup (5 consecutive wins from 1956-1960 and another in 1966). Then, just over 30 years later, the Galácticos supplied three more in five years. But a crucial difference at this stage is that Madrid have not been a force in European competition for half a decade. Not progressing past the round of sixteen consistently (6 consecutive attempts) is a damning and sobering statistic. And I think Grant underestimates the obsession Madrid have with returning to the summit of European club competition. Though their callous and surface driven ethos is unquestionable (the need to play attacking, care-free football maintains the Madrid image) it is only heightened by the appointment of Jose Mourinho; someone who wins.
It’s probably most fitting at this juncture in time that Mourinho finds himself head hunted by Madrid. It underpins the necessity of victory – by any means necessary. Though many have commented how the desire for great football supersedes the imperative of winning at Madrid, the very act of appointing an exponent of functional, tactically astute football is evidence enough to the contrary. It goes further than words, or player signings, or manager sackings to elucidate the image obsession that prevails at Real. Will the fans and the hierarchy grumble if victory is achieved unglamorously? Certainly. But if it brings the first Champions League trophy in nearly a decade the grumbles will not facilitate overhaul. A much more fitting scenario for Madrid and Mourinho to end with will be European success coming through the Portuguese’s methods and then the two parting company i.e. Madrid sacking him – only after he has restored them to the summit.
But again, this remains purely speculative. The Madrid media monster is unlike anything Mourinho has undertaken previously. His unique ability as a manager is not the habit of winning but more so how he reacts to the players at his disposal. To say he always plays the same way is a sweeping misjudgement; though the output has the same tone, the method does vary. At Chelsea he clinically instilled a 4-3-3 because he knew it would be tactically superior to the heavily used 4-4-2 in the Premier League (it was a reactionary step with regards to the league, it wasn’t because it was his unmitigated system). With Inter the tactical setup differed as the fulcrum shifted to a double pivot in midfield and Wesley Sneijder as a playmaker – the best coaches adapt and Mourinho will certainly do the same:
"I am a coach who adapts his philosophy to the players he has, trying to get the best out of my players. Normally, players feel valued again after their work with me. A team needs to have equilibrium. One needs to work with and without the ball, be strong offensively and defensively, have psychological balance, and win matches. Winning matches is very important because it makes one psychologically stronger and more confident, without which it is impossible to win titles."