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Real and Ronaldo under threat from Spanish wizard?
An unusual headline in Spain’s El Mundo newspaper caught my eye this morning: “Real Madrid threatened by wizard.”
According to the respected conservative daily, the La Liga club has received a letter from the magician, whom it did not identify by name, warning that he has been contracted to cast a spell that would inflict injury on their Portuguese winger Cristiano Ronaldo.
“I can’t promise that it will be a serious injury but he’ll certainly be out of action more than playing,” El Mundo quoted the wizard as saying.
He told the paper he was unable to reveal the identity of his client “because I am a mixture of priest and doctor and I have to respect the confidentiality of my followers.”
El Mundo said it was the third time the wizard had threatened Real after targeting players including David Beckham and Ronaldo (the portly Brazilian version) in 2003 and Iker Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Fabio Cannavaro and Raul in 2006.
The wizard has apparently already begun the process of casting his spell over Cristiano Ronaldo using photos of the world record signing spread out around his “laboratory”.
Is there a more superstitious industry than football?
After a foray into the mix zone after the English League Cup final, the injured Tottenham striker Jermain Defoe replied to one journalist who asked him why he had cut all his hair off.
“I had to, I only ever seem to get injured when I have longer hair,” he said.
I am neither a hairdresser nor a medical man but I thought this was a bizarre theory, but perhaps a lengthy spell on the sidelines makes you think this way?
Defoe’s superstition was the second recent football oddity to have grabbed my attention after Arsenal’s Kolo Toure received an unnecessary yellow card in the Champions League tie against Roma.
The Ivory Coast defender failed to ask the referee for permission to enter the pitch after missing the kick-off at the start of the second half.
Toure’s delayed entrance was because he waited for team mate William Gallas to finish receiving treatment so he could maintain his routine of being the last man to leave the dressing room.
I think the Defoe hair length/injury correlation theory is my new favourite!
Bella Guttmann allegedly cursed Benfica after being dismissed, having previously led the team to the second European title in a row.
He is said to have vowed that Benfica would never win another European title without him.
Six finals and six defeats later, one fan decided to dig up his grave on the eve of Benfica – Milan final in 1991.
He was arrested but defended himself, saying he was trying to get the spell reversed (don’t ask me how).
Benfica lost the game…