Bayern Munich winger Arjen Robben expects Inter coach Jose Mourinho to employ defensive tactics in the Champions League final, he said on Thursday.
Robben said Mourinho is only concerned about winning matches while Bayern, under coach Louis van Gaal, aims to attack.
“It’s a little bit maybe defense against attack. [Van Gaal] is a coach who wants to play football, he wants to play nice football,” Robben told a news conference. “Mourinho is a purer winning coach.”
“He has his tactics always ready. He doesn’t think too much about playing nice football,” he said.
The Netherlands international, who played under Mourinho when they were both at Chelsea, believes the Portuguese coach would be the ideal coach of Real Madrid, the club Robben left after two seasons to join Bayern last year.
“Mourinho is a very good coach. For Real Madrid, he might be the best,” said Robben, who was speaking alongside Paul Breitner, a former Real Madrid and West Germany player who now advises Bayern.
Robben has won the Bundesliga and the German Cup this season under Van Gaal at Bayern and Breitner believes the German side goes into the final as “clear favorite” thanks to the Dutch coach.
Bayern is now approaching the fluid play of Barcelona, he said.
“I have watched how this team has developed in recent weeks and months and this team is playing a very high standard of football. If you compare them a bit with Barcelona, they are still not at that level, but we are well on the way to reaching Barcelona’s level of play,” he said.
Robben says he does not see the Champions League final as an opportunity to take revenge on Madrid for selling him.
“I just want to say to the [Madrid] fans: Thank you very much for two great years here,” he said. “But now I’m with a different team.”
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