- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,196,348
- Reaction score
- 59
You must be registered for see images attach
The Daily Merengue is a place where you can feel free to d all things football. Do not be alarmed by the overt RMCF bias. It’s in the name! Shoutout to the mods who do a fantastic job, Ezek, Valyrian Steel, Felipejack, Juninho, NeRObutBlanco and yours truly, Kung_Fu_Zizou
You must be registered for see images attach
José Mourinho’s story is one of the greatest in football history. His success has often captured the imagination. A resilient and talented tactician with his own way. More importantly, a way that works. Or should we say, a way that has worked. The basis of Mourinho’s football has always been built around controlling the opposition threat and feasting on the openings they leave in their zeal to attack. This is a rather reasonable if not pragmatic approach to the game and will more often than not bring teams to glory.
The game has moved on somewhat with more positional and pressing schemes now dominating the game. The art of Mou’s football is somehow lost although not entirely with the Argentine flavour of Cholo keeping it alive and some might even through Mikel Arteta’s pragmatism in 2025/26 the Basque flavour all the way from North London. I would not consider myself an ardent supporter of pragmatic football but sometimes the very best players simply need some heavy pragmatism to balance out their eccentric natures and direct the energy towards a more efficient path to victory. Xabi Alonso failed to accomplish this despite not being nearly as pragmatic as the Special One.
Carlo Ancelotti has already shown that his methods still work after returning for a successful 4-year spell almost 10 years after La Decima.
You must be registered for see images attach
Mourinho will try to clean house and build a strong spine and character to execute his methods at the top end of the game. Mourinho’s methods may not always be the most attractive, yet, with world-class players in the squad, the execution of his methods through high quality players should create fertile ground for success. The questions will remain about whether or not his methods can still bring success. It seems almost inconceivable that a manager of his quality would fail with the resources that will be provided for him at the Bernabeu.
Who needs a Time Machine?
HOUSEKEEPING
Rüdiger Continues..
Real Madrid have secured the services of Toni Rüdiger for another season. The signing of Konaté provides the team with a potentially steady CB pairing for the season given the fact that defence has been ravaged by injuries for almost 3 seasons now.
Nico Schlotterbeck or Alessandro Bastoni?
Currently, the squad has five Centre-Backs; Rüdiger, Militão, Asencio, Huijsen and Konaté. It seems that the idea is to replace Asencio with the most affordable or willing of Schlotterbeck, Dias or Bastoni. I would not be in a rush to get rid of Asencio. He has mistakes in him but he’s not irredeemable. It takes time to build a CB and in a squad that has 5 or more CBs, we should have enough cover to allow both Asencio and Huijsen to follow their different trajectories. Asencio is the kind of player who will put together an historic streak of performances by virtue of being a La Fabrica graduate. There is something about players like Asencio, from the academy, who are not always great but will always repay the faith and trust. I am unashamedly showing my pro-Fabrica bias.
On The Way Up?
Franco Mastantuono is rumoured to be a favourite of the Portuguese boss. I suspect his work rate is something that has not gone unnoticed. The Argentine youngster has flattered to deceive with his decision-making and execution on the ball, yet his work rate has been beyond reproach. The youngster has had a difficult first season which can be expected for a teenager joining the biggest club on Earth.
Mourinho will give him a chance but will also be quick to give up on him due to the pressure. It seems like the best solution is for Franco to go out on loan. It is wonderful the we have kept the likes of Vini, Fede, Rodrygo, Camavinga and Arda in the first team to develop but it is not always sustainable. It is not always the right circumstance. We can compare Franco and Endrick’s trajectories. Yes, it was Endrick’s second season but his development was helped by the loan move whereas Franco will be under even more pressure at the start of next season. I hope for his sake, Mourinho is not seeing visions of Angel Di Maria when looking at young Franco because that would be incredibly unfair. Di Maria is a flash of lightning. Doesn’t announce itself. Just shows up and is suddenly gone but oh so bright and brilliant.
On The Way Out?
There will be a few players headed for the exits after the departures of Carvajal and Alaba. Ceballos has been leaving every summer.. He is still leaving this summer.
On The Way
The current approach seems to be focused on signings first and departures later. It will be interesting if the club signs another midfielder before another departure is confirmed. There’s always a risk of repeating the same mistake by signing a midfielder to grow the size of the roster without adding a different dimension to the game.
The midfielders most strongly linked with the club are not impressive in my view. There’s very little to be excited about. Perhaps that’s the way Mou prefers it. He wants functionality not flamboyance. However, there is no doubt these are players Mourinho believes can give him the options he needs to complete his midfield. Enzo is the most experienced of the 3, meaning he is not much of a risk. The only issue with Enzo will be whether the game is built around him or squeezing him into a system. He is a thorough midfielder and likely entering what could be his prime years. The other two youngsters take us back to when we signed Camavinga and Tchouaméni.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
Mourinho’s second spell is shaping up to look much like his first spell. He arrived to find Karim Benzema and Higuain and probably wanted another striker. One that would suit him more but that was not going to happen. He wanted another left-back despite finding Marcelo already there. Mourinho made some wonderful additions with the likes of Özil, Di Maria, Khedira and Fabio Coentrão. It really strengthened the squad not only for the short term but all the way through to La Decima and beyond. The only position Mourinho never really got right was Right-Back. That was eventually resolved by the return of Daniel Carvajal in the summer of 2013. There is reason to be optimistic that Mourinho will once again bring stability that will continue long after he has left.
Continue reading...
