Jose Mourinho, on the eve of the Inter vs Barca once again demonstrates the ruthless qualities that makes him so reviled and yet so admired. The man evokes such a complex range of emotions.
Calling Barca’s desire to get to the Bernabeu to contest the CL final an “obsession” is a stroke of Machiavellian genius. Inter on the other hand have a dream. It bathes them in the same high minded aspirations of Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela; a better future for their people after years of struggle under the yoke of discrimination and colonization.
The Bernabeu is a focal point because Mourinho believes nothing will stop Barca from trying to take the title in the abode of their bitterest rivals. Their single minded obsession trivializes the most important trademark of that team; the beautiful game. Can such a nakedly base pursuit live in the same body of a beautiful thing?
Of course, Florentino Perez’s astronomical €400 million price tag of his players, reductio ad absurdum, disproves Mourinho’s contention. Au contraire, it is the Merengues consumed by an unhealthy obsession with their Catalan counterparts. But who wants to parse that? Naturally, it leads to the issue of gamesmanship.
The uglier aspects of the game will be brought to the fore as Sergio Busquets will dive to gain a penalty, free kick, or better still get someone sent off as Barca have 90 minutes to fulfill that obsession. Mourinho has already given us the casus belli. Barca might win but they will be damaged goods. Perfect.