It’s the week of the Champions League clash, between Inter Milan and Manchester United. And Milan manager, Jose Mourinho, is making it clear how he sees the game playing itself out, even declaring the Milan formation, and personnel.
It’s a typically bold stroke by Mourinho. Showing no fear ahead of a big match. No sense of trepidation. No fear of failure. Only complete and utter belief in his players and his methods. As if the bigger the occasion, the greater the pressure, and the more certain Mourinho’s belief becomes.
Perhaps Jose, needs to raise the stakes. Needs to put himself on the line, in such a way, that magnetises his focus to the job in hand. It as if, this is how he gets into the zone. Into that golden state of mind, where Mourinho knows and feels himself to be unbeatable. Where he can see the games every move, played out in his mind beforehand.
To do so, Mourinho has to feel pressure. Has to feel that everything matters. And when he gets that special feeling, he is naturally able to raise his game. By stating his strategy in advance, Mourinho puts himself in a vulnerable position. But his stability is found, in the total and utter belief in his own ability, to out-strategize his opponent.
He knows that he can get the better of Sir Alex Ferguson. And he knows that Sir Alex knows it. The evidence of his time in England tells us that. When he transfers that irrevocable belief to his Inter Milan players, they will feel unbeatable too. For many years, Inter have underachieved in Europe. They will never get a better chance than now, in the presence of The Special One, to match talent with achievement.