This thread is designed for coaches to talk about coaching issues. If one wants to commeent who is not a coach, please identify themselves as such.
Since the RCL has promotion/relegation of some indefined sort, and state cup group play has their criteria, what is the coaches' view about this sort of situation. Playing to advance, to achieve the objective (advancement/not being relegated/ etc.) as opposed to winning the game at hand?
And what are the differences in a professional situation - where so many millions of dollars are at stake - compared to the youth situation where the coaches job may be at stake? yeah, in both situations the coaches job is at stake.
Clearly, there are ethical issues involved, particularly on the youth side more than the professional side. What are your opinions?
>>>Spain Special: Pellegrini's Malaga Are Not The Only Losers After 7-0 Defeat To Real Madrid
Goal.com's Paul Macdonald assesses the questionable ethics of the Boquerones 7-0 thrashing at the Bernabeu.
By Paul Macdonald
Mar 5, 2011 10:00:00 PM
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Photo GalleryZoomKarim Benzema, Real Madrid, Malaga
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Back in September, Jose Mourinho lambasted Sporting coach Manolo Preciado for fielding a weakened team when taking on champions Barcelona at the Camp Nou. The Portuguese cried foul play, questioning whether an inter-linked conspiracy was at work to ensure that the Primera Division title remained in Catalunya.
His words were met with vitriol, particularly from Preciado himself, who reacted in an expectant manner when his integrity was brought under scrutiny, but the fact remains that the Rojiblancos were indeed short of first-team regulars in their 1-0 defeat. And at the Santiago Bernabeu on Thursday evening, it was the turn of Mourinho's side to be handed a free pass, with Malaga surrendering meekly 7-0 in what was an utterly miserable capitulation.
Visiting coach Manuel Pellegrini was branded as Los Blancos' 'best loser' this week by Mourinho, in reference to his record-breaking, but utterly fruitless spell in charge during 2009-10, but he and his team were not only bad losers on this occasion, they were not the only ones to lose out due to their apathetic attitude towards the contest.
The Chilean made the decision to leave a number of regulars out of his side, mindful of the weekend relegation encounter with Osasuna that represented an infinitely greater chance of achieving a positive result, but in many ways dropping his key players is irrelevant; it was the manner of the defeat that was most galling, and most dangerous for the future competitiveness of the division.
His team were awful; disinterested, disorganized, and frankly conveyed the notion that they had already consigned themselves to defeat before the match had even kicked off. From the moment Karim Benzema neatly volleyed home on the 27th minute, Malaga may as well have walked from the pitch; the French attacker, with teammates Mesut Oezil and Cristiano Ronaldo, were given the freedom of the stadium, strolling around with training-ground aplomb as the goals flew in.
The Andalucians had the worst defensive record in the division prior to the match, anyway, which gave an indication that Los Blancos could win handsomely, but when players simply neglect their duties because they know victory is unlikely, the entire fabric of league competition is placed into disrepute.
The Big Two's Trail of Destruction
Oct 03 Real Madrid 6 Deportivo
1
Oct 23 Real Madrid 6 Racing 1
Oct 30 Barcelona 5 Sevilla 0
Nov 20 Almeria 0 Barcelona 8
Nov 20 Real Madrid 5 Athletic Bilbao 1
Dec 12 Barcelona 5 Real Sociedad 0
Dec 18 Espanyol 1 Barcelona 5
Dec 22 Real Madrid 8 Levante 0
Mar 03 Real Madrid 7 Malaga 0
The concept of fielding reserve players when a more important match awaits is one thing; almost throwing the contest is quite another. There must have came a point when Pellegrini, as a highly-respected tactician, was thoroughly embarrassed by the flagrant manner in which they invited submission. Incompetence is one thing - not trying is quite another.
They are not the first culprits of simply striking a cross through the calendar when it reads Barcelona or Real Madrid. Almeria were even more resoundly humiliated in November, but on that occasion, Juan Manuel Lillo was sacked almost immediately after the final whistle, having clearly lost the ability to motivate his team into some semblance of resistance.
This, however, was a pre-conceived defeat, a fixture played out by the Boquerones as if it didn't exist. Pellegrini's openly unapologetic stance in the post-match press conference was almost as irritating as the performance, of lack thereof, from his team.
"Our game is against Osasuna, not tonight. We rested players for that. I would have rested Eliseu, [Martin] Demichelis and Weligton, too, but I had no more players," he told the media.
“I understand that this is a disappointment, but I think it would have been irresponsible to have played with the best players. Against Real Madrid, we cannot get a result. The truth is that this match does not affect us at all.”
La Liga's financial disparities are well-documented, but when teams start admitting defeat before games are played, the duopoly of the big two will remain forever, and the Primera Division may as well be replaced by a pair of El Clasico fixtures, with the rest fighting among themselves for the other 18 spots.
And who is to say what kind of impact such a result will have on Madrid's season? Ronaldo hadn't scored in four matches, but blasted a hat-trick to bolster his confidence, while Benzema helped himself to a double, and there was even time for a rare appearance from Sergio Canales.
It is easy to understand the mindset of a team where remaining in the top flight is their only objective - but they have sacrificed their dignity in order to fight another day, at somewhere else other than at the Bernabeu.
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