Bookmakers probably would not offer good odds on Jose Mourinho exploding at his first press conference before the Pilar Festival (a traditional Spanish holiday in October). Now, in early October, Mourinho, who arrived at Valdebebas in the summer with a rather calm demeanor, smiling and quite reassuring, has turned into a hot-headed character, displaying Real Madrid-style complaints. Complaints and a victim mentality have become the hallmark of his discourse.

Since then, if there is anything else to say, it is about dealing with the so-called "anti-Mbappé campaign," or Vinicius constantly running into trouble. But recently, hardly anyone around Real Madrid talks about football anymore. Sometimes, looking back at the past can help rediscover the true character and spirit of the club: if Real Madrid has always represented elegance and greatness, why now are there so many complaints, so much opposition, so much bitterness?

What would Santiago Bernabéu think of a Real Madrid so prone to complaining? Does no one realize that every complaint against the referee—and against UEFA, LaLiga, or the Spanish Football Federation—only makes Real Madrid seem smaller and pettier?

You have to go back a long way to find such a stark difference in style, form, and substance between two major rivals. The theory of control and counterbalance has always existed (you know, one side's luck means the other's misfortune), and the current contrast in the football image that Barcelona and Real Madrid present is all the more striking.

One side focuses on playing football, while the other seems to devote all its energy to nurturing conspiracy theories, damaging its own assets—such as the "Mbappé incident" and baffling Real Madrid fans by not appreciating their best players—or sending the "Negreira report" to UEFA.

History is cyclical, and it tells us that everything returns to its starting point: there were also periods when Barcelona self-destructed and Real Madrid won relentlessly. For example, in 1988, when Barcelona's locker room exploded in the "Hesperia Rebellion," while Real Madrid fans enjoyed weekly displays of the "White Eagles." This is just one example. Similar situations are countless.

What is certain is that the current situation deserves reflection: Barcelona is ensuring that problems in the boardroom do not affect the locker room. As for Real Madrid, we no longer know whether the atmosphere in the locker room is poisoning the boardroom, or vice versa, the boardroom is poisoning the locker room. And at the center of this storm, Mourinho has returned once again as in his previous stint at Real Madrid, entirely lacking self-criticism: every problem is always caused by outside enemies.

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