Eunderstand the Real Madrid It’s something complicated. Explain it, an impossible. The comebacks, the finals, las Champions. The mystique, the epic, the divine hand. When a phenomenon so close becomes incomprehensible, it is best to step back and ask those who see it from afar, with more perspective, with fewer sentimental ties that cloud judgment. But also, in most cases, with the same difficulty in putting words to what the eyes are seeing.
At MARCA we wanted to look for definitions in foreign language dictionaries, sending several colleagues from other countries the following question: “How do you explain why Real Madrid doesn’t stop winning, coming back from games in the final minutes and winning Champions League titles?“And their answers provide various meanings… or chapters of a novel.
Episode I: paranormal phenomena at the Bernabéu
“It just can’t be explained! That’s precisely what increases the fascination with everything Madrid achieves,” he explains. Antoine Simonneau, Madrid correspondent for L’Équipewho speaks of the feeling that the white team generates beyond the Pyrenees: “In France they think that Madrid’s victories are both the great mystery and the permanent miracle of football. And the white club exerts both a kind of fascination, of deference, of great respect as well as of fatigue and jealousy. Recognizing their superiority and their merits, there is a certain tiredness of seeing Madrid always win and seeing that almost no other team is capable of putting an end to its European hegemony.
The Bernabéu says goodbye to Madrid from the Decimoquinta in style
“The thing about Madrid is a phenomenon. In English there is the phrase ‘self-fulfilling prophecy’, that is, strange things that continue to happen because they have always happened. In the case of Madrid, the story of the comeback began decades ago and now it is They wait more than ever… and also the rival almost waits for it. Sometimes, you can almost see the thoughts of the rivals, like Dortmund on Saturday in the 70th minute ‘We have been better but we haven’t scored and Madrid always finds. the way to win’. It is something like ‘a self-fulfilling prophecy’, something that contains a bit of premonition and that, the more you think that something is going to happen, the more it will happen,” he defines. Andy MurrayEnglish journalist who writes in FourFourTwo among other means.
It’s something like ‘a self-prophecy fulfilled’, the more you think something is going to happen, the more it will happen.
Pedro Barataneighbour’s Expressalso speaks of fascination: “The first thing to say is that in Portugal there is always a lot of attention to Real Madrid, more than to other European greats, because of the connections we have had since the times of Figo and especially the era of Cristiano and Mourinho. And I would tell you that from the outset Real Madrid generates great, great admiration here and there is an idea that it does not fail, that is, here in Portugal from the moment Madrid wins the penalty shootout against City, everyone gave ‘Well, these are going to win’ is guaranteed, because the feeling is that when they reach the semi-finals they are not going to fail. Real Madrid’s competitive ability is greatly admired and no matter what, they are going to win.”
“I think we have changed Gary Lineker’s famous phrase after the 1990 World Cup to ‘Football is a simple game: 22 players chase the ball for 90 minutes and in the end, Madrid always wins (in the Champions League).’ words to describe or understand what Real Madrid has done over the last 10 years. It seems that what they do in the Champions League is something supernatural that no one knows how to explain. The coaches and players have faith that whatever happens in it. a game, they can always score goals… and the opponents have the same fear that Madrid can score goals no matter how little time is left in the game,” he says. Christina Paulos, Norwegian TV2 reporter.
On the other side of the pond, that mystical idea that Madrid handles these situations in a unique way also exists. It is corroborated by Olé journalist Sergio Maffei: “The first answer one could give to that question is its winning mystique, unique in the world. Hand in hand with that, there are other factors that enhance it. Real Madrid has a master’s degree in finals, it is the one that best knows how to play them in the planet of the ball. He played so many times that he already knows his moment to win them. And he always finds it, even without showing his best version, he knows that he will have a chance and that he will not let it pass.
Episode II: An Unbreakable Mindset
“More rationally,” says Simonneau to take us out of the spiritual plane and return us to the football field“their ability to succeed year after year is explained by their history, their tradition and their very particular link with the European Cup. They seem destined to stay together forever, it seems to be the eternal marriage. It is also explained by the weight of white t-shirt that forces its players and makes its rivals fear, and also thanks to the club’s values: the desire to always improve, to never give up, to have an unusual faith in its ability to win, its obsession and obligation to win… are values that are transmitted from generation to generation and that in the end create in the club a very strong identity that almost no club has in the world and a tremendous winning mentality.
Borussia Dortmund 0-2 Real Madrid: summary and goals | Champions League (Final)
For Andy Murray, furthermore, There is a fundamental difference when it comes to understanding the squad between Guardiola and Ancelotti: “Above all, Madrid’s mentality is what defines it. It has always been like this. It has ‘top’ players with a high technical level (Vini, Bellingham, Kroos, Valverde, Rodrygo and soon Mbappé) but also guys like Antonio Rüdiger , who know how to win at all times. They never doubt the possibility of winning, it is what has always defined the club that has this (possibly Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United of the 90s) and it is its great resource. Furthermore, Ancelotti is not a Pep, a tactical brain who demands control and predicting everything. Ancelotti understands football on the part of the players. He understands how they think and knows how to find a system that works, where they have fun, with the plus. of that mentality. It is an incredible power.
“It also highlights the hyperrealism of Madrid in both areas, both defensively and offensively. His ability to resist, to suffer, to bend but never break. He compares the white club to a reed. He also fascinates the lethal, clinical side of Madrid, which does not need a multitude of chances to kill its rivals. If you don’t manage to kill them and if you forgive chances, everyone knows that Madrid will do it and win,” concludes Simonneau.
Recognizing its superiority and its merits, there is a certain tiredness of seeing Madrid always win and seeing that almost no other team is capable of putting an end to its European hegemony.
Sergio Maffei It focuses on the winning and relentless mentality of the whites… and the fear that instills: “The hunger for permanent glory of their footballers. Despite having won everything back and forth, they go for more. A sacred internal fire that is difficult to defeat. Kroos and Modric are the emblematic cases. But there is a school behind And then, the quality and hierarchy of their figures, which are the support of all of the above. Without high-end players, there is no tactic or strategy or mystique that is worth it. All of this concludes in the last point, not the least: the respect and fear it generates in its rivals, who know that at any moment Madrid will do it again.
From Brazil, Martín Fernández of O Globo talks about that ease of winning whatever the game mode, whatever the opponent: “It’s the place where the stars feel comfortable. You look at players like Kroos, Vinicius, Bellingham, from such different generations and origins, and they all They look like brothers sharing a house. If they have to spend a whole game behind, defending, it’s fine. If they have the ball 90% of the time, I guess it has a lot to do with the way Ancelotti calms them down. trust”.
“As for the comebacks… Well, I think it is associated a little bit with the competitive gene that we have talked about and there is also a lot of talk about the magic of the Bernabéu and that is greatly admired, above all I would say that that is a very important of what Madrid is. Signing great players, the DNA, the role of Florentino and the idea that when the decisive moments arrive they do not fail,” he says. Cheap.
If they have to spend a whole game behind, defending, that’s fine. If they have the ball 90% of the time, that’s fine
“It seems to me that the Champions League has become part of Real Madrid’s DNA: every player who comes to the club must understand that it is the competition that matters most. Because of this, and the unprecedented success of the last decade, the players of the “Real seem to believe that they will never be defeated in the Champions League. Of course, the club’s financial strength also means that it can count on some of the best players in the world,” Gareth Cotterellfrom the South African newspaper The Citizen.
Episode III: impeccable work in the offices
And after the mystique and realism of the grass, the darkest job. The one with the offices. The figure of Florentino Pérez grows bigger abroad with each victory, with each Champions League that ends up in the Bernabéu showcases. “Madrid’s brilliant sports and economic strategy and policy in recent years stands out: very meticulously signing the best young talents in the world who fit directly and perfectly into Madrid’s mentality and philosophy: talent, ambition and desire to improve constant. With an extremely well thought out mix between veterans with intact talent who are mentors, examples, vectors of the club’s traditions and values, with young people who pay attention to them, have talent, ambition and are attentive to all their needs. tips to improve. And this can be done thanks to the great economic management of Florentino Perez who has become an example worldwide. Finally, the great work of his coaches Zidane and Ancelotti stand out, who at the same time perfectly embody the club. and his great abilities to manage groups of stars and his ability to make players adhere to his speech, his vision and his game concepts,” analyzes Simonneau.
In the same line it is pronounced Pedro Barata: “Why do they win? We would say that it would be because of that very accentuated policy with Florentino of always signing great players, which was seen now with Bellingham, with the arrival of Mbappé… There is the idea here that Madrid always has those 2-3 world stars and that is why they win. And there is also a very great admiration for the Nacho, for the Carvajal, for the people who transmit that Madrid DNA and those who pass those hierarchies, that know-how to compete that Madrid has. And then another figure who also generates admiration and who is talked about a lot here is Florentino. He is admired and it is also understood that his sporting project has helped guarantee so many Champions Leagues.”
Florentino Pérez: “This is the starting point to try to win the ‘Sixteenth'”
And in Brazil, main fishing ground of the white technical secretariat in recent years, Martin Fernandez applauds Madrid’s strategy: “Looking from afar… it seems to me that there are a few factors. Real Madrid is the team that moves best in the market. Vinicius was promising, but he was not an obvious purchase, like Endrick is today So the way they ‘created’ Vini makes the club the natural destination for the next one, which is Endrick. Who went after Valverde in 2015? The club managed to become (or remain) anyone’s choice. young man with talent and ambition. Of course, having a lot of money helps, but clearly that is not the only reason.”
Reason is precisely what is most difficult to find when one tries to express in words what Real Madrid has been doing. The world cannot explain what its eyes are seeing either.
