Real Madrid vs. Barcelona: Who's To Blame, the Referee or Jose Mourinho?

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We will have to go to Barcelona and look for some pride, without Pepe who didn't do anything, without (Sergio) Ramos who didn't do anything and without a coach to sit on the bench." - Jose Mourinho  

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In a game dominated by misdemeanors and controversies, we witnessed 90 minutes of mockery and charade which saw three red cards, one on the field and two off it, two Lionel Messi goals that have all but sealed the deal and numerous mini-bouts that neutrals could have mistaken for a boxing match. 

Apart from criticizing the Barcelona coach, Wolfgang Stark and UEFA, Jose Mourinho also needs to read up on his tactics—reminiscent of the tactics he deployed at the Bernabeu in the league match, heavily criticized by Real Madrid legend Alfredo Di Stefano.

In an approach to salvage a tie, Jose Mourinho deployed three defensive midfielders in Diarra, Pepe and Alonso, alongside Ozil and Angel Di Maria on the wing.

It was an effort to stuff Barcelona's midfield attack and nullify any chances that could have developed through Xavi and the rest of Barcelona midfield.

Had Real Madrid opted to be more attacking and handed a start to Adebayor (brilliant against Tottenham), Kaka or Higuain (a hat-trick against Valencia in their last game) and shown a more attacking mentality altogether, things could have turned out differently.

Beating Barcelona at their own game is without a doubt a difficult task, but Jose Mourinho should have known better.

Had he exploited Barcelona's weak back line with those persistent long-balls for Adebayor or Higuain to poach, perhaps Jose Mourinho could have got something out of this game.  

As for all the spite that he has for his Catalan rivals, it was his farcical approach that has left Real Madrid reeling with one leg to go, not a German referee by the name of Wolfgang Stark.