Andy's Tuesday tips - Barca again
Mourinho is in unchartered territory here and things are about to get even worse with Barcelona looking good for yet another win.
So we found out on Wednesday night that not even Jose Mourinho can halt the Barcelona juggernaut.
The first leg was a funny sort of game that took a while to get going but once it did, it made for some fascinating viewing. It was a shame the sending-off happened because from that point onwards it stopped being a contest for the first leg and the end result pretty much means it's stopped being a contest overall. With Manchester United achieving the exact same result in Schalke, it looks like we'll have a repeat of the final from two years ago; it will be interesting to see if United can fare better this time.
This is a very novel situation for Jose Mourinho. He's not used to going into second legs trailing by one goal, let alone two, so he'll be having a few sleepless nights over how to set up his team with a view to turning this tie around. How to approach this second leg is of course the big question because if they go at Barca a little too Gung-Ho they could concede on the break and the match will be over before it's even started. But if they're a little too cautious they won't have a chance at all and the Madrid fans will be left wondering why Mourinho didn't go for it.
Most stats point to the fact Barca win virtually every home game they play. Granted, Real Madrid aren't your standard opposition and Barca don't actually need to win this game but there's bad blood between these two and Pep Guardiola will be telling his players it's a fantastic chance to rub it in their opponent's noses. Confidence is sky high in the host's camp and Real are without two key players in Pepe and Sergio Ramos, not to mention the fact Mourinho will have to watch the game from the stands. It's hard not to fancy another Barca win.
Recommended bets:
Back Barcelona to win at 1.7
Back Barcelona to win 2-1 at 9.6
Published: 3 May 2011
Eniola (May 2, 2011 1:44 PM) said:
Barca must win dis match atleast 2_ 0 over real madrid
Ben (May 3, 2011 7:51 AM) said:
I agree. Hope it ends up an embarrassment for Mourinho. 4-0 Barca