HE IS HIS OWN WORST ENEMY

Mourinho is his own worst enemy. He went off the reservation with his latest and greatest adventure. He made the serious and irreparable mistake of forgetting that Real Madrid is not Porto. Nor is it Chelsea. Nor Inter. There is no comparison, not in terms of history or honours. Or glory. Or titles. And not in the importance of the emblem or the shirt. Or the dressing room. Or the fans.

He even defies himself when he says that no-one may laugh at him. How dare they! Not the press. Nor Casillas, even if he is the Real Madrid and Spain captain, and a European and world champion. Not Ramos either. And certainly not Cristiano Ronaldo, even if on merit, goals and because he is one of the two best players in the world, he should shine brighter than anyone at Real Madrid. Not the referees, of course. Nor the other managers. Not UEFA, nor FIFA, not even Unicef.

He is Mourinho. The special one
How could anyone expect him to attend the FIFA Ballon D'Or Awards and sit next to a bum like Del Bosque, who only works for one month of the year. What a complete outrage! It is just pure coincidence that Del Bosque won Real's last two Champions Leagues, two league titles, the Spanish and European Super Cups and the Intercontinental Cup, all in the space of just four years with a much more unbalanced team than the current one.

What is all this nonsense about the Spain team ruling the world after astonishing Spaniards and foreigners alike (except for Mourinho, of course) with three consecutive triumphs which no other international side has ever achieved? Just two European Championships with a World Cup in between? - Child's play!

1. He has not had the players' full backing
Some players have backed Mourinho to the hilt, but others (Casillas and Ramos) have stood up to him and told him things to his face.

2. He does not think that the club has agreed to his demands
Although Mourinho has had more power than any other coach in Real Madrid's history, it isn't enough for him.

3. Irreconcilable differences with the press
Mou dislikes being criticised, and he believes that Spain has not shown him the respect he deserves, even before his arrival.

4. He cannot forget being whistled against twice at the Bernabéu
Used to being idolised by all the fans at every club he has coached, Mourinho has never felt fully supported by the Bernabéu faithful.

5. He feels disrespected and mistreated in Spain
He said in his home country that "it's tough being Portuguese in Spain". He thinks that nobody has shown him the respect that his achievements deserve.

6. His family do not feel settled in our country
His son has had the odd unpleasant experience playing for Canillas.

7. A previous bad experience staying beyond the end of the season
He finished his third season at Chelsea and wanted to leave, but he stayed and then terminated his contract in September.

8. A club where "the walls have eyes and ears"
Mourinho has been obsessed with leaks throughout his three years at Real.

9. A similar fatigue to that of Pep Guardiola
Mourinho has suffered unbearable fatigue due to competitive stress and numerous demands.

10. He misses England and the Premier League
Mou started to miss the Premier League the day after he left Chelsea. Football in England is a religion, he is idolised by his own and respected by the opposition.

THE PORTUGUESE NEEDED 196 GAMES TO DO IT

Cristiano Ronaldo has reached 200 goals in 196 competitive games with Real Madrid; 146 in the league, 16 in the Spanish Cup, 35 in the Champions League and 3 in the Spanish Super Cup.

He still trails Hugo Sánchez, with 208 goals in 281 games, Puskas (237 in 262), Santillana (288 in 645), Di Stéfano (307 in 392) and Raúl (323 in 741).
Of all of these, Cristiano has needed the least number of games to reach the landmark of 200 goals. Raúl needed 405, Hugo Sánchez 268, Di Stéfano 237, Puskas 209 and Santillana 412.

Cristiano Ronaldo has scored 33 league goals this season and is the player with the highest number of headed goals, six following his brace against Valladolid. So far this season he has scored 53 goals in 52 games.

With 146 league goals, Cristiano Ronaldo draws level with Raúl Tamudo as the third-highest active goalscorer and the twentieth-highest La Liga goalscorer ever.

The Portuguese star is also the player who has had the highest number of shots hit the woodwork with as many as nine, including his free-kick against Valladolid.

THE PORTUGUESE DEFENDER QUESTIONS HIS MANAGER'S ACTIONS

Pepe has criticised the attitude that his manager Jose Mourinho has taken to goalkeeper Iker Casillas, who, according to the central defender, "should be respected more".

"He's our manager, but with Iker you have to have a little more respect. The players and the fans are behind Iker. The manager's words weren't the most suitable", the player said to Digital Plus.

"Iker is a real institution in this club, and also in Spain", the Real defender insisted, who did not want to talk about the manager's future: "We are quite calm. We have to honour the colours of our shirt".

THE BERNABÉU FAITHFUL HAS SPOKEN

Six minutes before the Real Madrid – Valladolid game kicked off, the majority of the 30,000 fans present in the stands at the Bernabéu whistled in protest when José Mourinho's name was announced through the loudspeakers, before applauding that of Iker Casillas.

This all came after being knocked out of the Champions League semi-final by Borussia Dortmund and Mourinho’s latest statements, in which he spoke out against Casillas and the press, whilst refusing to reveal his future.

In the first minute of the game, the usual chants in support of José Mourinho echoed from the stands occupied by Real’s more radical fans, chants that on this occasion were snubbed by a number of supporters, who once again whistled in protest.

A BRACE FOR THE PORTUGUESE, BOTH HEADERS

Real Madrid did the business against Real Valladolid -not without suffering- and has put Barcelona under pressure. Marc Valiente, scoring an own-goal, a brace by Ronaldo and Kaká scored for Los Blancos, who tonight rest eight points behind the leader.

Barcelona will not be able to win the league this Sunday and will have to wait until next week, when it visits Atlético at the Vicente Calderón. The title could be theirs a few days earlier, if Real Madrid fails to beat Málaga in the league game which has been brought forward.

Los Blancos managed to get the job done against a Real Valladolid side that put up a fight, taking the lead with a goal by Óscar. Real Madrid drew level from a Di María strike, which Marc Valiente deflected into his own net.

Then the Cristiano Ronaldo show began, to make it 2-1 with a headed goal, before rattling the crossbar from a free kick. However, Valladolid responded and drew things level again with a Javi Guerra goal.

Kaká and Cristiano Ronaldo gave Real some breathing space, although a Sastre screamer gave them a fright just before the end.

ACCORDING TO 'LA GAZZETTA DELLO SPORT'

Juventus is thinking of Paris Saint-Germain’s Swedish forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic, or, failing that, Real Madrid’s Argentinian forward Gonzalo Higuaín, as a possible reinforcement for its forward line, according to Saturday’s edition of the Italian sports daily, ‘La Gazzetta dello Sport’.

The paper reports that Juventus’s priority is Ibrahimovitch, wanted by those in charge of the club to play alongside Fernando Llorente in the team’s forward line. The Spanish international signed a four-year contract to this end last January, and it will come into force in July.

'La Gazzetta dello Sport' also states that in spite of the fact that negotiations over Ibrahimovitch have not yet begun, the player has indicated that the idea of playing in Italy again is appealing. He already played two seasons at Juventus, the club which tomorrow could become champions of the Italian league for the second year in a row.

Ibrahimovitch’s present contract with PSG runs until 2015 - €12 million annually, plus bonuses. However, according to the ‘Gazzetta’, he would be prepared to drop his price to €9 million if Juventus were to offer him a longer contract. The problem, according to the paper, is that Juventus is prepared to offer him only €7 million and a contract for four years, even though no contact has yet been made with the French club, which is concerned at present with the possible departure of manager Carlo Ancelotti for Real Madrid.