A Football Report

Madrid’s invaluable pursuit of ‘La Décima’ 

It’s hard to put a price tag on winning the Champions League, but this year it’s worth a few more million euros to José Mourinho’s men. It’s no secret that Real Madrid desperately want to win the Champions League for the 10th time, a trophy they’ve been relishing to lift since 2002, courtesy of that unforgettable Zidane volley. Since that glorious night in Hampden Park, Real were close to reaching the final in the following year until they crashed out to Juventus in the semis, who subsequently knocked them out the next season in the quarter-finals.

And then the curse began… For the following 6 editions of Europe’s grandest competition, Los Blancos were unable to go further than the last 16. The hopes of winning ‘La Décima’ transformed into a Saharan mirage, but the obsession clearly never faded - especially through Marca’s publications. Semi-final appearances have come courtesy of Mourinho, which is as promising as it is painful. It was recently confirmed that club president, Florentino Perez, will give each player a reward valued at half a million euros if they win ‘La Décima’. However, you’d hope that financial incentives would be meaningless in the context of how important this trophy is to the club. Regardless, tonight the chase continues at the Bernabéu.

‘The cure of an obssesion: get another one’ - Mason Cooley