They say that a Machiavellian is a man who lives his life using pure logic, not letting emotion cloud his judgement. If that is the case, then Mourinho’s plan to nullify Liverpool was the ultimate Machiavellian ploy. Media making this out to be one of the biggest games of Chelsea’s season? Reduce expectations by promising to send out, and then sending out, a “B” team. Liverpool will attack like a guided missile at the start of a game? Waste time from the start so they have less time to dominate. Liverpool are devastating in transition? Make sure everyone is back within seconds of losing the ball. Decisions that will no doubt annoy neutral fans of the game, but, when analysed in the cold light of day, decisions that were spot on.
As much as I despise Mourinho’s tactics in big games like this, you have to admire the way he always seems to get the result against the big teams. Against the rest of the top 4 sides (Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal), he has only dropped points away at Arsenal in a 0-0 draw. And this big match-winning pedigree isn’t just a one-off; you just have to look at what he did last season with Real Madrid. Matches don’t come much bigger than the El Clasico, and last season, Mourinho only lost 1 out of 6 El Clasicos, and that match was in a two-match Supercopa tie which Real eventually won. He even took on Barcelona with a weakened “B” side, ahead of a crucial Champions League clash against Manchester United, and won 2-1 (see the comparisons to the Liverpool match?). And there’s no need to mention his record of never failing to win a trophy in a season. All in all, his record shows that he is a proven winner.
But what does Roman Abramovich, Chelsea’s quiet but all-powerful owner, think of all this? It is said that the idea of buying a football club first came to him after he watched a Champions League encounter between Manchester United and Real Madrid, a free-flowing affair that finished 4-3. And that’s what he wants from Chelsea, to be a side up there with the biggest names in world football, winning major titles while playing beautiful football, the kind of football that Liverpool has played this year. It is why he actively chased Pep Guardiola last season, a man who has proved at Barcelona that he could mix results and style successfully.
Part of Abramovich’s aims has been achieved, with Chelsea becoming a member of the European elite, but they are yet to produce a footballing dynasty based on the beautiful game. And if anybody has been the downfall of this one desire, it is Abramovich himself. He has made immediate success a job requirement for the role of Chelsea manager, without realising that it could take time to develop a side that can dominate with pretty football. He has been ruthless when it comes to firing managers, with the case of Ancelotti coming to mind straight away (Ancelotti was fired after coming 2nd, the season after he won both the League title and the FA Cup). And it is why, 11 years on from his initial purchase of Chelsea, his club ‘parked the bus’ twice in a week, against two sides with smaller budgets and ambitions than his (Atletico Madrid and Liverpool). Trophies will come, but unless Abramovich changes the way he judges and handles his managers, the beautiful football he aspires to see may never arrive.
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