Casillas and Mourinho, oceans apart

Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words. The camera shot of Iker Casillas on the Real Madrid substitute bench at San Mamés, during a dressing-down from José Mourinho directed at the substitutes, speaks volumes. The image perfectly sums up the situation the Real captain finds himself in, especially in terms of his relationship with the Portuguese.
Moments before the start of the match against Athletic de Bilbao, Mourinho jumped up from his seat on the bench and angrily spoke to the Madrid substitutes, excluding Casillas, who sat behind at the other end and was far from involved in the coach's chat with Nacho, Álvaro Morata, Gonzalo Higuaín, Raphael Varane and Fabio Coentrao. During the chat, José Callejón, the closest to Casillas, moved closer to listen to the manager, who did not look at or speak to the goalkeeper once.
Mourinho's brushing-off was caught on TV by the 'Canal Cuatro' cameras, which picked up that the coach was telling them to put on their shirts in order not to waste time in the event of having to make a quick change: "Why aren't the players on the bench wearing their shirts?", he asked. The incident reflects the current coldness of the relationship between Mourinho and Casillas. The keeper and coach seem further apart than ever. The same could be said about the Spain keeper's chances of regaining his place in the starting-eleven.