via Talkingbaws.com

By Zach Ricchiuti

Once an international star, Wesley Sneijder now toils in relative obscurity with Galatasaray.

In 2010, Wesley Sneijder was on top of the world.

The Netherlands and Inter Milan playmaker had just won the historic treble for the first time in Inter’s history, and played an important role in wins over Chelsea, Barcelona and Bayern Munich. He then went and scored five goals during the World Cup, propelling the Netherlands to the final for the first time in more than two decades. Sneijder was one of the best players in the world, and looking to make a big-money move to Manchester United.

Fast forward a few years, and he is now something of a pariah. Frozen out at Inter over what was some combination of a coach’s decision and a salary disagreement, depending on who you believe, Sneijder was forced seek new pastures far removed from the glitz and glamour of Europe’s top leagues. Where he landed is at potentially the low point of his career, as a member of the Turkish league’s Galatasary. How he ended up there is a bit longer of a story.

Ever since Sneijder broke onto the scene at Ajax, his stock seemed higher than it should have been. His subsequent move to Real Madrid inflated it further, painting him as the free-kick heir to David Beckham. He won silverware there, but faced constant questions about his weight and commitment, and soon was off to Inter. There, he would be the centerpiece of a club coming off a league title handed to them after the Juventus match-fixing scandal.

This finally seemed like the perfect fit. Italian squads are one of the few left in Europe that rely on a traditional No. 10 position, and often feature narrow midfielders supported by aggressive fullbacks. And Sneijder did have a wonderful 2010 season. He worked well with teammates Samuel Eto and Diego Milito, spraying wide passes and firing 20-yard missiles on goal. In coach Jose Mourinho’s system, he was in full control.

Sneijder’s comfort came at a steep price for Inter, though. Mourinho racked up bloated contracts (including Sneijder’s) and hefty transfer fees, and with the financial fair play system looming, the coach was soon out and Inter was scrambling to avoid disaster. On the field, new boss Stramaccioni made it clear that Sneijder’s role was shrinking. He would be slowly replaced by the more workman-like Freddy Guarin, who could cover more ground and press opponents’ midfielders, all at a steep discount to what they were paying Sneijder. Eventually, dumping him altogether became the only viable option.

Sneijder was in search of a team again. And despite his pedigree and relative youth, few wanted him. His wages effectively ruled him out of a spot on any Italian club. Only Juventus and Milan could afford him, and neither are in a logistical position to bring him into the fold. Manchester United, Sneijder’s old suitor, is an embarrassment of riches at his position with Wayne Rooney, Kagawa and a number of other strikers already at the club. Among other squads, concerns about his lack of fitness seems to have scared everyone off.

So Turkey it is. It’s an ambitious move for Galatasaray, which hopes to challenge for the Turkish title and then become a regular contender in the Champions League. And they’ll at least be a must-watch for one match, when a newly eligible Sneijder leads them into a knock-out round contest against Schalke, more eager than ever before to prove his doubters wrong.

Zach Ricchiuti is a contributor and resident soccer expert for Began in '96.

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Via ESPN

By Zach Ricchiuti

After initial success, Jose Mourinho's arrogance and controlling style is getting him run out of town — again.

"Everything you touch turns to ash." 

"The job won't save you." 

"If only half you motherfuckers at the district attorney's office didn't want to be judges, didn't want to be partners in some downtown law firm ... If half of you had the fucking balls to follow through, you know what would happen? A guy like that would be indicted, tried and convicted. And the rest of 'em would back up enough, so we could push a clean case or two through your courthouse. But no, everybody stays friends. Everybody gets paid. And everybody's got a fucking future."

I've spent this past week re-watching The Wire, and I can't help but keep thinking how similar Jose Mourinho's career path is to Jimmy McNulty's five-season descent through alcoholism, depression and excellent police work. 

For the uninitiated, McNulty's arc goes something like this: Through defiance and arrogance, he talks his way onto the biggest case in the department, rallies the crew behind him, puts together a brilliant investigation, alienates the crew through his intensity and addiction, falls out with his superiors and gets kicked out. Along the way, he costs the Baltimore PD thousands of dollars in wiretaps and surveillance equipment. It's a cycle that repeats three times throughout the series.

Aside from McNulty's raging alcoholism, Mourinho seems hellbent on mirroring The Wire character's self-destructive career. He declared himself the "special one" upon arriving at Chelsea, and then went on to win two league titles, an FA Cup and a league cup. But his internal popularity soured following a power struggle between he and owner Roman Abramovich's advisors, and soon he was off to coach Inter Milan. There, he won an historic treble, yet in the process spent so much money that the club is still financially crippled.

Mourinho was on the move again, and the allure of Real Madrid proved too much to resist. Pundits and madridistas thought his style of play too negative for Madrid, his attitude too biting and his ego too large. Yet the desire to end Barcelona's dominance over La Liga overrode those fears, and soon Mourinho had built a vicious counter-attacking machine. Led by Ronaldo, Real Madrid was the fast and violent yin to Barca's methodical yang.

But while Marcelo Bielsa, manager of Athletic Bilbao, is said to be physically exhausting with his relentless pressure and overlapping style, Mourinho is exhausting on an emotional level. (There is an all-too-teling video of him leaving Inter Milan, with defender Marco Materazzi bawling like a baby in his arms.) And at Madrid, his inevitable slow demise as a result of that is playing out before us.

Real Madrid is an institution of Spanish nationalism and pride. It was Franco's club during his dictatorship, and received suspicious government assistance in a number of cases. Spanish newspaper Marca is practically a team spokesman, and managers come and go as quickly as the rain in Spain. That institutional culture is clashing now with Mourinho, who clearly believes that his word is absolute law. He disregarded his advisors again this week and dropped keeper Iker Casillas, prolonging a power struggle that has sunk team morale and Mourinho's job approval. It seems that people around the club are simply fed up with Mourinho's belief that he must control every aspect of the club.

The squad is also deeply divided along national lines. It it said that there is a Portuguese contingent led by Ronaldo and a Spanish one with Casillas and Sergio Ramos in charge. So while Mourinho fights Real Madrid's directors for autonomy, he is at the same time battling to unify the club's player factions. While Casillas could probably do a little more on the goal-stopping end, his benching is also partly a declaration of strength on Mourinho's end.

But it is all a slow exercise in failure. Reports leaked last week that Mourinho will part with Madrid in June. The league title all but belongs to Barcelona, with Madrid now 16 points behind the league leaders. Mourinho's time and reputation in the city now hinges on the team's upcoming Champions League performance. Failure to bring that trophy back will surely outweigh his triumph last year over Barcelona.

This saga all says more about Mourinho as a coach than any of his previous spells. His intense, almost fanatical addiction winning and success made him the most sought-after coach for big clubs needing quick success. But Mourinho burns almost everything he touches. He spends a ton of money, is inconsistent and torches any trace of progress when he's thrown out the door. It's exactly why Mourinho and Madrid were a perfect match, destined to succeed, and then destined to fail.

Zach Ricchiuti is a contributor and resident soccer expert for Began in '96.

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