From 'Juanito's spirit' to 'fear': the campaigns that are so popular in Madrid

BarcelonaIn January 2015, a group of well-known figures from the Real Madrid community, including journalists, gathered at Toñín el Torero's bar to invoke the spirit of Juanito. They used a Ouija board. The goal was for the late Real Madrid player to inspire the Whites to come back from behind in a Copa del Rey tie at the Bernabéu against Atlético de Madrid. It was quite a spectacle, but it was to no avail. The match ended in a 2-2 draw, and Atlético advanced 4-2 on aggregate. Perhaps the most extravagant attempt of all, but by no means the only one.

Real Madrid fans have become accustomed to psychological campaigns whenever they need to overturn an adverse score at the Bernabéu. This endeavor relies on the complicity of the media that regularly cover Real Madrid news. Whether in the sports press or on radio and television talk shows, the football debate takes a back seat. It's about boosting the morale of the troops and convincing everyone possible of the feat, from the players to the fans, and even the opposing team.

The day after the 3-0 defeat at Arsenal, the first messages began suggesting that a comeback would be possible. They didn't mention the team's footballing or tactical shortcomings, instead appealing to the epic, the individual talents of stars like Mbappé, or the life-saving saves of Courtois. The fact that none of this worked in the first leg would prevent the campaign from being launched across all media and social networks.

It's the culmination of work that began internally with the team's psychologist, who proposed other examples of comebacks from a three-goal deficit. In Madrid, they explain, they used the case of Barça, who lost in Rome and Liverpool in two consecutive years with a three-goal advantage from the first leg. The examples serve to inspire footballers to believe in the possibilities of a comeback, and the media helps create an optimistic atmosphere for everyone, including the 80,000 fans who will be watching the match in the stadium.

Mystical beliefs to compensate for the lack of footballing arguments.

But football is about playing, and if the opponent is preparing the match thoroughly, it's hard for these encouraging messages to be successful if they're not accompanied by good football. Real Madrid has had enough of invoking the spirit of Juanito, although it has rarely yielded good results. "Let my father rest in peace, because every time he is mentioned as a comeback, we end up losing," said his son, Roberto Gómez, a few years ago. In the club's recent history, there is no precedent for the Whites having overcome three goals against in Europe, which is what they will attempt on Wednesday against Arsenal. In 2016 they overturned a 2-0 deficit against Wolfsburg, while the other comebacks have only been by one goal, in 2022: at PSG (1-0 in the first leg) and at City (4-3). In the second leg, the final score was 3-1.

The other campaign that went viral was the funk, the name given to Real Madrid's comeback attempt during the 2008-09 season, the season that saw Pep Guardiola win the treble. Barça finished the first half of the season with a 12-point lead, but the Madridistas, with a new coach, put in a spectacular second half of the season, narrowing the gap to 4. "We're tired of hearing this word. What counts is that we're four points behind... and we'll see what happens on Saturday at the Bernabéu," Gerard Piqué declared. And so it happened: Barça won 2-6, with a goal from the center back. This same campaign was also attempted again in 2016 when Madrid came back from nine points behind Barça in La Liga. But, with Luis Enrique in charge, the Blaugranas didn't fall into the trap and ended up winning the title.

Statistics, the last resort

And if none of that works, you can always turn to statistics. Someone has noticed that Easter Wednesday is an auspicious day for Real Madrid, who have never lost a match in the 21st century. Among their notable victories are three in the Champions League: one at Old Trafford in 2000 (2-3), against Apoel Nicosia in 2012 (5-2), and against Bayern Munich away in 2017 (1-2). The other three are in the Copa del Rey and against Barça: the finals in 2011 (0-1) and 2014 (1-2), and the semi-final storm of 2023 (0-4). In the absence of footballing arguments, anything goes to make people believe in a miracle. The important thing is to keep the pot boiling.