Madrid bounce back, Jose Mourinho praises Diarra and Ronaldo
Real Madrid’s coach, Jose Mourinho, praised his side for their amazing performance against Real Zaragoza, which earned them a win on Sunday.
However, Mourinho revealed he was not too impressed with the officials, who he believes do not treat his side equally. In the clash against Real Zaragoza, Xabi Alonso and Marcelo both received bookings, which will see them miss next week’s important fixture, against Sevilla.
After an embarrassing defeat to Barcelona, Real Madrid kept the pressure on their rivals with the 3-1 win over the weekend. Mesut Ozil, Ronaldo and Angel Di Maria scored the goals before the home side got a consolatory penalty.
Despite Real Zaragoza being bottom of the La Liga it was an impressive performance by Mourinho’s side. They seem to have recovered from the 5-0 thrashing by Barcelona. This was their third successive win in the Primera Division and the Champions League.
The Portuguese manager was especially impressed by Lassana Diarra. Diarra had been out with an injury, but more than made up for it when he paired up with the players in midfield to give a world class performance. Mourinho said while speaking of the French international, “Lass was the man of the match. He was incredible in every aspect”.
The Portuguese is no doubt very happy to have Diarra back, having to use Alonso and Sami Khedira, in his absence.
Mourinho went on to praise his fellow countryman, Cristiano Ronaldo, and criticized the way opposing fans treated him. Ronaldo scored the second goal of the match with a 25 yard free kick, which took his goal tally to 17 goals in the La Liga this season.
Mourinho was proud of his star player, he said while speaking to reporters, “Cristiano Ronaldo is a phenomenal player and it's difficult to understand what happens to him”.
He further added, “To treat a phenomenon like him so badly leads me to think they are not protecting the championship. He belongs to La Liga and to Spanish fans, who can watch him on television or in the stands. I don't even protect him by giving him a break, he always plays every minute. He puts on a show everywhere and is not protected by the stadiums, fans, opponents or referees. Even so, today he scored one of his best goals, another one for his collection”.
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