On Saturday, Real Madrid beat Villarreal 1-0. José Mourinho did not come to the press room. On Wednesday, he won 4-3 in Rome. That time, he came.
In between, the Spanish federation banned Vinícius Júnior for four matches. He had come on after the break on Saturday and scored. VAR ruled the goal out: he had pulled the hair of Nathan Saliba, a lad who came through Anderlecht. The referee, Isidro Díaz de Mera, sent him off on the spot.
VAR, then. It looked at a goal and found something else. In 1980, a goal was a goal, and whatever happened before belonged to the past. We called that football. I’m not criticising. I’m comparing.
The punishment comes in two parts. Two matches for violent conduct away from the ball, with a fine. Two matches for protesting to the referee, the assistant or the fourth official. In my day, there was one referee and two linesmen. You protested against fewer people.
He will miss Sevilla, FC Barcelona, Racing Santander and Valencia. The Clásico on 25 October, at the Camp Nou. Real announced at once that they would appeal. The player himself apologised to his team-mates and the supporters.
Mourinho said Vinícius learned of his ban two hours before kick-off in Rome. “Couldn’t they do it tomorrow morning?” he asked. He said he would do everything to make people open their eyes.
Silly question, but if he doesn’t speak on Saturday and he speaks on Wednesday, did Saturday’s press conference happen or not?
I read all of this at the chip shop. Next Monday I’ll read it again. A manager who stays silent on Saturday and talks on Wednesday. A ban that arrives two hours before a match. Everyone has a scheduling problem.
Well. It’s the times.
It’s true, we checked: Sporza.
