Whoooo! I made it home just in time. Here’s a post for all your thoughts before,during and after. List of streams here. The commentators are already calling this Ronaldo vs. Mourinho. I guess we’ll see, eh? Me? I’m more looking forward to the Sernando. HALA MADRID!
– Lozil
Of Headbands and Heartbreak
watishistacorrespondents
Of Headbands and Heartbreak... 
should be a nail biter
Grrrrr! I am so peeved that I was unable to go to this now that I’m watching it on TV. Why did my boss have to be on his honeymoon right now and leave me to run the department?! WAH! He gets back in the US tomorrow. UNFAIR!
Only 30 mins in and it feels like a full match already. It’s on!
It’s so on! Our defense is shaky though. Man, Lamps just took down Edith. 😦
True, it is a bit shaky which led to Ramires’ dink goal. I keep thinking where’s Varane and then remember he’s not back yet. 😦 But Extra Crispy is back to his tenacious self and I am loving it!
Well, unfortunately we’ve had a shaky defense for at least the past 3 years 😦
pleaseee bring out torres, mou, so we can have sernando! sese’s hair looks better in motion than in picture!
i’m enjoying the cris/marcelo hugs though!
Ramos picking up nando after he knocked him over, then petting him. I wept into my wine a little.
I squealed about that!
I’m crying because I missed it! 😦
and carvajal crying because he’s so happy to win something with RM. lots of emotions.
There’s a photo on the RM website of Cris shaking Maldini’s hand and he looks so excited! I picture him bowing down like Wayne and Garth and going “I’m not worthy! I’m not worthy!”
Well, now I know how all you Madridistas feel when you are in a vastly different time zone. I was up at 3am to watch this then crawled back into bed beside my sleeping husband with a post-it stuck to my forehead, proclaiming the score and ‘don’t wake me’. It was so worth it! Cris, you are just pure class with your wonderful goals and the patience you showed to the over zealous fan! Loved it!
I also was up at 3 am (it was the first time I watch a game in the middle of the night) so I know now how those of you watching matches in different time zones feel,and I gotta say I admire you! Me and my cousin tried to be quiet ( her sister and nephew were sleeping in the next room) but when we saw Ronaldo with the fan we were like “awwww” 🙂
It was at 9am my time so I totally missed it. But we won! We beat Chelsea! We beat that backbiting bridge burner Mou! (Sorry Mou but my esteem for you has fallen by many points since you left acting like a hurt puppy. Most unprofessional of you, Mou.)
Freakin’ awesome game! Even my ‘soccer is boring’ hubby said Madrid makes each of the other 6 teams look like 7th graders…….high praise indeed! the Sernando action was adorable, Isco is going to be a force to be reckoned with, and Cris? He was in fine form last night! He showed great tenacity, and was a true gentleman to the fan who ran onto the field and just hugged him for what seemed like an eternity!
aw….you lucky girl! Glad you got to experience being a Madridista live!
The booing was really loud when they announced Mou. Seems like his recent comments might have been the final straw, even for those madridistas who still liked him. It was especially gratifying that they announced Iker right after and everyone went nuts cheering.
They played like a team with a mission to show Mou who’s boss….it was palpable. I loved it.
I still like him and I feel the remarks are being blown out of proportion. As I mentioned in an earlier comment this week, the first translation of the remarks I saw said “original Ronaldo” and then it became “real Ronaldo” I’ve regularly seen original recipe Ronaldo referred to both ways for years. I think just because it’s Jose saying it that it’s getting so much press. Now, Jose is a crafty fucker and may have done it just to be contrary, I fully admit that, but why should Madridistas or Cris take the bait? It’s silly. All these perceived insults and everyone getting in high dudgeon about it is ridiculous. This isn’t life or death. It’s sports and these are showmen of the highest order. I really couldn’t believe the crap some people were slinging last night on Twitter (from both sides!) It’s like they’ve been chugging their respective teams’ Kool Aid and I find that distressing. I love my team to pieces but I’m a realist. No one is 100 % good or bad and there’s tons of shit that we’ll never know about all these situations. I saw several of our players greet Mourinho warmly. If he was that awful, I’m sure that they wouldn’t be doing that. Xabi gave him a big hug. Others snubbed him. Obviously based on their particular relationships and fair enough. (And those relationships go both ways, remember). They are people who actually know him. We don’t. That’s why I find it interesting when fans are so vehement in their hate. Say what you want about Jose but he’s still motivating us to win. 😉 And when he said “Madrid is politics” that’s the stone cold truth. We’ve known about the politics there for years. That’s no surprise.
Sorry for the rant but this is something that’s bugging me. Someone actually said that Arbeloa was fucking up (on purpose) last night because he was loyal to Mou and he should just go to play for Chelsea. What. The. Fuck. I guess some people need simplistic heros and villains in order to root for something. I find the situation much more interesting and complex for all the gray area.
Arbeloa’s yellow card was very blatant however…..but I do agree, it’s all part of the ‘business’. Yes, it’s a sport, but it’s a business….and a successful one at that. I know I have a very limited viewpoint on the whole Mou issue(s), but you could feel something in the air last night that you couldn’t mistake for anything less than an ‘in your face’. just sayin; ‘…..
::shrugs:: People want to be like that then fine. Anything either side did was going to be dissected to the nth degree. The pettiness annoys me though.
Here’s a return rant for you 🙂 (Although I think both these rants are very polite).
Even when I didn’t agree with his decisions, I used to truly believe Mou had the club’s best interests in mind. And even after I came to feel that he shouldn’t be our coach anymore, I thought that when he went to another club I would still have a lot of respect for him. But towards the end of last season I think his attitude was one of disrespect. It was more important to him to demonstrate his power, than to do what was best for the team; it was more important to be right than to even attempt to mend fences. I’ve always said that we can’t know what goes on behind closed doors. You’re 100% right that nobody is all good or bad. I don’t think Mourinho is a monster, nor do I think Iker or Pepe or even my very beloved Sergio is perfect. But you can make judgements based on how people behaved in public, and I thought Mourinho overreacted to things in a petty, childish way. Obviously the press is complicit in the fact that this is still an ongoing saga, by trying to provoke him or misrepresenting quotes. Which is where a “no comment” might come in handy. He’s been at this long enough to know what the press would do with his comments, so in my opinion, to say anything at all is to knowingly poke the bear. None of which is to say you, or anybody else, should dislike him. I understand why people see things in a different light. But I also (obviously) think there’s legitimate reasons to be angry with him.
And you’re right, nuance is more interesting that hero/villain. It just doesn’t sell as many newspapers. We’ll have to hope that one day someone writes a thoughtful account of “Madrid: The Mourinho Years.”
Anyway, all I want is a strong season. Nothing repairs wounds like winning some silverware. Hopefully the ICC will be a pattern for the season.
Thank you! You have crystallized my thoughts. I was very pro-Mou. But I didn’t like the pettiness and vindictiveness that he displayed before his departure. I gave him the benefit of the doubt, since he is the mister and the team is still in his hands.
But after he left, he was still taking digs at Real Madrid in the press. That’s really unprofessional of him.
I loved Chelsea before, but now I’m not so sure how I feel with Mou at the helm.
Ay Mou, gone but not forgotten… at least not until another interesting villain is found. 😉 So, my 0.01…
Mou backbiting? Petty and childish? Yeah, ok. So? We’re really still taken aback by all this? It’s like people want to forget why he’s still mad. What we saw on the outside of the Madrid drama was bad enough. Imagine what the fighting was like on the inside, how ugly and insidious it must have gotten. And at the end, Mou lost. Shit, I’d be salty too. And we’re talking about Mou here, so did anyone really expect him to be all “yes, they were so lovely” after what happened? That man’s not going away without a bitch fight. “Hurt puppy” wouldn’t be my description of him–more like pissed off, cantankerous old man. None of this makes him more endearing, but well, it’s not surprising.
As for Iker, as much as it pains me to say this because he’s still my capitan, I REALLY don’t care for these “Iker was right all along” sentiments. And they’re meant to justify what? No one is bigger than the club. Not Mou, not Flo, and certainly not Iker. And I’m going to leave it at that.
Now, for the game… Real Madrid is my team, but Chelsea is my Prem League team (like Juve is my Serie A team). I totally expected Real to beat Chelsea. Their roster is young (cross out Lamps/Schwarzer and the average age plummets) and as talented as they are, they’re still far from being an all-star squad like Real Madrid. Our guys played like they had something to prove? Um, they wouldn’t have had to. We won, and that was the expected outcome (hey, check the betting odds). But of course it makes for a better story to be all “oooohh, look at that, what’s it mean” about it. And the stupid accusations against Arbi? UGH. Why do some plebs insist on turning everything into a bloody soap opera?
Anyhow, a win’s a win. 🙂 But it’s just a friendly so let’s not get too excited, not with Barca building up and Bayern’s scary super-team waiting to bulldoze everyone in Europe.
‘Left acting like a hurt puppy’ Care to back that up? He did 3 seasons as the most high profile coach in the world got burned by sore, fragile, over inflated egos (Hi Iker!), not to mention a hugely hostile media. What have you done lately? sheesh.
Now now, be civil. I love Mou and Iker but the ego thing goes both ways. I find it interesting though that people rarely attribute any ego to our players (with the exception of Cris). They wouldn’t be where they are without a healthy dose of ego! It’s not always a bad thing. 😉
That´s what bothers me too. It´s always Cris who gets blamed of having an ego .. Loved that people got to see what a sweet guy he can be. It´s never ever just all black and white. Not with Mou, Iker or Cris.
Btw the Arbeloa fucking up on purpose comment is beyond ludicrous and delusional. It´s like saying Sergio would totally let Nando score.
What?! The whole ‘sack him or I’ll quit’ capi/vice capi lunch? If that isn’t ego I don’t know what is. Ego is fine in its place…I belive it tipped way into hubris last season. Is that healthy? You always bang on about your job so I guess its pretty senior; would you take shit from your subordinates? I’m guessing no. Mou was the boss, failure laid at his door hence he had to make the decisions he made. Please tell me how I wasn’t civil for future reference
Are you in a bad mood today or something? You’re not usually this testy. I just said that they both have egos. I even said that most people don’t attribute ego to our players which I believe is bullshit. Read my very long comment from earlier – it’s straight up defending Mou. Not sure why you’re jumping on my comments.
If you disagree with something someone says here, discuss it. But saying “What have you done lately? sheesh.” is a bit rude. The tone of the comment came off as unnecessarily confrontational and that’s now how we roll here. Same in your response to my comments – you just seem super pissy about what I said and it’s not really needed in this situation. I’m just moderating my blog. If jellyace responds angrily to you, and you to her, then it escalates and I don’t have the time or the inclination to clean blood off my blog walls, you know? So ease up on the tone. You may not even be aware of how it’s coming off, so I’m politely telling you.
Lots of people do not care for Mourinho. Many of us love him. It’s not something that people are going to agree on anytime soon, so as long as we’re civil in how we discuss a touchy subject, it will be fine. Thanks.
Jellyace wasn’t civil, and I stand by my comment asking her to justify what she’d done lately. In my group of friends its known as the ”coming from you” defence. I wonder if you’ve noticed how many posters cease posting after interaction with you. I get that you like to be right. Might be something to consider
*whistle* Abrazos! Hug it out, girls! 🙂
passionate exchange ladies, but can’t we just stop for a second and stare at a shirtless Sergio or something? *smile* And the universe is righted on its’ axis again…..
Sigh. What we have here is a failure to communicate. I’ve got no problems with you asking Jelly to justify her comment (politely). I do have a problem with you taking it into the personal and that’s why I asked you to be civil. Jellyace made a comment about Mou which you clearly didn’t like. However, he’s a public figure and someone that none of us know personally (If you’re a family member or something, I stand corrected and apologize).She didn’t insult you or refer to you disparagingly in any way. However, in your defense of Mou, you went at her personally. Do you see where I’m coming from? She was one of several people who made less than favorable comments about Mou (and lord, you should have been on Twitter last night. People were total arseholes). Not sure why you had a go at her in particular. (Or me for that matter esp. since I wrote a long comment defending Mou – I sincerely don’t get it).
And as for the last part of your comment, I see what you did there. Trying to turn it around and make me the bad guy when I politely asked you not to jump down someone else’s throat. I hate to tell you, bu it’s no secret that I’m a big bitch, least of all to me. 😉 However, this has nothing to do with me “being right” It has to do with you being rude to another poster here who had done nothing to you personally. But that said, we’ve always asked people to keep it out of the personal (check out the About US page). I am who I am and I try really hard to keep things here on an even keel. It’s not always easy. We have made a sincere effort to keep this neutral ground for a wide range of fans and not have it turn into a bitchy free for all like other places. Like it or not, that’s not going to change. ::shrugs::
Don’t get me wrong, I like you – I love your comments, think you’re funny and add a lot to this community. And so does Jelly. If you disagree with her about something, be polite & civil, keep it on the topic and don’t make it personal. That’s all I’m asking and I really don’t think that’s much.
And if we’re supposed to be considering things, perhaps you might ponder that this is the second time you jumped on a comment this week and were confrontational? Earlier in the week you went off on mygypsyspirit and I and accused us of “lady hate” when we were joking about whether she gets goofy over Kaka. I just can’t help but feel that something else is on your mind and we’re getting the brunt of whatever is pissing you off. We’re here to have fun and we’d love for you to join us. But seriously, if you’re spoiling for a fight, please don’t bring it here.
Lala…by hurt puppy I was referring to Mou’s comments to the press about Real Madrid AFTER he left and was already declared manager of Chelsea. No matter how hurt you feel, it is very unprofessional to disparage your former employer and co-workers in public. Yes, he’s a hurt puppy lashing out.
BTW, I was never in the anti-Mou / Mou out side while he was still the manager. I am talking about his behavior as the new manager of Chelsea.
Ok, I have explained my statement, and I’m sorry if you or others do not agree with my opinion. But I will not fight with you.
Excuse me, La-la, I have never made a direct attack on you as a person. I was expressing my opinion of a pubic figure based on his statements made to the press. It’s an ISSUE, it’s NOT all out war with those who disagree. You have the right to disagree. But that makes neither of us right nor wrong. We just don’t see things the same way. I can live with that. I hope you can, too.
So let’s all hug it out and start over. Abrazos, mi amigas.
I know things are getting a bit tense so I want to preface this by saying that I’m asking this out of genuine curiosity and not in a challenging way. Was the rumour that Iker and Sergio tried to have Mourinho fired ever confirmed? I heard the rumour, then everyone flat out denied it and I never heard anything about it again until a few days ago when suddenly a lot of people started talking about it as if someone had confirmed it.
It’s my educated guess that the rumor started out of something quite similar. Not that they flat out and obviously tried to get him fired but there was something underneath it. The squad had issues last year. I think it’s time to move on, personally. My opinions on everyone involved in Real Madrid has changed drastically in the last couple of years. I still love them all, but it’s become a little harder sometimes
And it’s official…..I have been sucked into the Madrid vortex…..they were handing out Chelsea flags last night (the stadium was awash with them….ahem, REAL? where they hell were the Madrid flags?); someone offered me one, and I actually heard myself say ‘no thanks, I’m Real”. That slid off my tongue way too easily…..
Welcome to the White Side!
Chelsea may have had the flags, but the Madrid side had the voices….we were LOUD!!!! (there I go with the ‘WE’ thing again) I can’t talk today, and my hands are so sore from all the clapping I did (happy pain!). they put one shot of Mou on the jumbotron, and that was the LOUDEST boo I ever heard…..interesting dynamic.
I am LOVING being a newly ordained Madridista!
Just know that this ordination doesn’t allow you to perform marriages. 😉
So does this mean that you’ve abandoned your beloved Barca? That was quick.
oh no, I never abandon…..there’s lot of love here for both teams……
and I have two Christino face masks staring at me all day in my office…..I may see Messi play one day, but gotta say, Cris was amazing to watch. it was a real treat seeing him score 2 goals….
Oh man, isn’t he something else to see live? I caught one of the matches last summer and could not get over how TV just doesn’t do him justice.
What got in to Marcelo?! He was everywhere! Spectacular. And Cris was just amazing. I can’t help thinking that it was all a big “in your face” to Mourinho.
That’s not what got into Marcelo… That’s “Where has Marcelo been?!”
he’s healthy, he’s clicking with cris as he should. they caused HAVOC on their side of the field and it was just gorgeous to watch.
If they can keep that momentum up throughout the season, they will be tough to beat….
I am beyond thrilled with our boys! Everything Cristiano did was incredible- the goals, the way he dealt with the pitch invader, the trophy moment, his post-match comments, EVERYTHING- and I really love him. Marcelo was on fire, too! Sunshine!!! Best moment for me, though, was after Iker made a save and the fans started chanting his name so loudly. Everyone can have their opinion on him, of course, but- and I’ve said this before- he’s been my idol since I was seventeen and I want every good thing for him. So that was awesome.
I don’t have any loyalty one way or the other to Iker, and I was chanting his name just as loudly as anyone else in the stadium. *I now sound like vintage Brenda Vaccarro as a result*
I may be one of the few people here who gets that Brenda Vaccarro remark. 😉
I was testing the chronological waters…..thank you for not making me feel like something from the mezozoic era……
and I actually knew YOU’D get the reference….thank you for confirming my faith in you!
Ooops! I got it, too. My age is showing.
I Googled your reference and have now caught it (sorry, hehe). But yay for joining the chanting! Last year I dragged my cousin to the Philly game. She knew absolutely nothing about Real at the start, but by the thirtieth minute or so, she was cheering right along with me and everyone else in our section. It’s just fun to catch the energy.
Since my age or generation has been outed, let me share one of the life lessons I have had a hard time learning along the way. PICK YOUR BATTLES. Before getting sucked into a fight, ask yourself, what is the price of this battle. What could I lose if I engage in this battle.
So I ask myself: “is it worth getting kicked out of my happy place if I got sucked into a battle over my opinion?”
“Is it worth leaving my happy place over Mou?”
Nope.
I second that. I was mildly abused about Mou too, so that discussion is kind of off limits for me. No harm, no foul. There’s so much other good stuff to obsess over with this team.
I also choose to pick my battles, and yeh I pick Mou. I’ve found it hard to interact with people who choose to see what they want and ignore the obvious. Iker threw a bitch fit about being benched. That was the catalyst that led to Iker engineering Mou’s downfall. The rudeness & disrespect that followed, culminating in the Chelsea match was appaling. Your enjoyment of that spectical spoke volumes. safe to say I’m no longer on speaking terms with RM. I held my tongue for MONTHS bc it was clear you were all blind to the obvious faults. I just have lost patience with you all.
Peace!