La Liga
Mourinho Called Ozil, Coward
Fans may be wondering on what sometime happen in the dressing rooms when players and their managers get into the locker room.
German international, Mezut Ozil has giving some indications of occasional bust off when he revealed that maverick coach, Jose Mourinho once called him a “coward” and “cry baby” during a furious half-time bust up while both were in Real Madrid
Ozil spent three seasons playing under Mourinho at the Santiago Bernabeu, during which time he won LaLiga and the Copa del Rey.
However, Ozil’s work ethic and contribution to the cause was questioned by the Portuguese in a half-time spat, during which the now Arsenal midfielder angrily hit back at his coach.
In an extract from Ozil’s book, Die Magie des Spiels, serialized in German newspaper, Bild, Ozil revealed:
“Mourinho screamed at me ‘Do you think two nice passes are enough? You think you are too good to enter a duel. You think you are so good that you can play at 50 per cent.
“Do you know what it looks like when you enter a duel? Let me show you.’ He then tiptoed around the dressing room with his hands close to his body and pursed lips.
“I lost it and screamed at him to go out there on the pitch and play himself, taking off my jersey and throwing it at his feet. I told him to put it on and go out there.
“Mourinho was just laughing and sniped ‘Are you giving up already? You are such a coward. What do you want to do? Get in the warm shower and wash your hair?
“Do you want to be alone? Or would you rather show your team-mates, the fans and me what you can do? You know what Mesut, why don’t you start crying! You are such a cry baby, get in the shower. We do not need you.’
“I grabbed my towel and walked past him into the showers without saying a word to him.
“I later apologised for my behaviour to captain Sergio Ramos and the rest of the team.”
Ozil added that he came to realise why Mourinho made an example of him in the changing room.
“In the end, I understood why Mourinho was screaming at me like that in front of the other players,” he added.
“He wanted to make it loud and clear that he never wanted me to relax. He wanted me to get out of my comfort zone. He wanted to make me stronger and keep pushing me to ensure I kept developing.
“Looking back, Mourinho was right. I felt that playing nice was enough when I arrived at Madrid. I was too easily satisfied. Mourinho pushed me on and I thanked him for it. He later apologised for his choice of words as well. He made it clear he just wanted to get the best out of me.”
Sunday’s LaLiga derby between Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid was temporarily suspended in the 69th minute due to fans hurling objects onto the pitch after defender Eder Militao scored the opener for the visitors.
While Real players celebrated the goal in the 64th minute, Atletico ultras Fondo Sur, who are located in the south lower stands, threw objects towards visiting keeper Thibaut Courtois, who alerted the referee and he decided to halt the match.
Atletico captain Koke and defender Jose Maria Gimenez went to the south stand to calm the fans down but the referee ordered the players to go to the dressing rooms as the announcer warned that if the behaviour continued the game would be abandoned.
After a delay of over 20 minutes the players returned to the pitch and the game resumed.
-Reuters
Mounir Nasraoui, the father of Barcelona and Spain star winger Lamine Yamal, was stabbed late on Wednesday at a parking lot in the northeastern Spanish town of Mataro, La Vanguardia newspaper reported, citing official sources familiar with the matter.
Reuters was not able to independently confirm the report. The regional Mossos d’Esquadra police force and a spokesperson for the Mataro local government did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
According to La Vanguardia report, Nasraoui was taken to the Can Ruti hospital in the nearby city of Badalona and his diagnosis was “serious”. It added that local and regional police had located several witnesses of the incident.
However, a later report by sports website Relevo, also citing official sources, said Nasraoui had been released from hospital and was back at his home.
Yamal, a soccer wonderkid who grew up in coastal Mataro – a working-class, multi-ethnic suburb of Barcelona – became the breakout star of the recent Euro 2024 held in Germany.
Spain won the tournament, helped in part by the 17-year-old scoring against France in the semifinal on July 9.
-Reuters
Real Madrid and Brazil forward Vinicius Jr is open to an offer of more than one billion euros from Saudi Arabia, sources close to the player told Reuters on Monday.
Vinicius, 24, was approached by Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) officials to inquire about his interest of moving to the Saudi Pro League (SPL) on a five-year contract worth around 200 million euros per season fixed, plus bonuses.
The package would also include a separate 10-year contract to become an ambassador for the 2034 World Cup, which is set to be held in the country, but those terms and financial numbers are yet to be discussed.
Although an official, formal offer has yet to be presented, Vinicius has not dismissed the move and gave permission to PIF to approach Real Madrid.
Despite being “happy and motivated” in the Spanish capital, Vinicius and his representatives believe that a lucrative offer like this needs to be studied carefully.
Another source close to the player said that Real have shown no interest in negotiating a transfer, highlighting the player’s one billion euro buy-out clause.
Real Madrid and PIF did not respond to requests for comment.
Obsessed to be taken seriously as a soccer force, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia announced a Sports Clubs Investment and Privatisation Project, with PIF taking ownership of 75% of the capital of the country’s four main clubs: Al Ahli, Al Ittihad, Al Hilal and Al Nassr.
The biggest Saudi transfer came from the country’s most successful club, Al Hilal, who spent 90 million euros to buy forward Neymar from Paris St Germain.
With Karim Benzema at Al Ittihad and Cristiano Ronaldo at Al Nassr, PIF tried to persuade France captain Kylian Mbappe to be the big name Al Ahli is still missing last year.
The forward, however, turned down Saudi’s lucrative offer and joined Real Madrid in June.
The proposal for Vinicius is understood to be similar to the Mbappe offer. The Brazilian would join Al Ahli, linking up with former Premier League players Riyad Mahrez and Roberto Firmino.
Vinicius, who is under contract until 2027 after signing an extension in 2022, is a contender to win the Ballon d’Or award for the best player in the world after helping Real to a Champions League and LaLiga double last season.
-Reuters
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