With Aitor Karanka at the helm these past few Champions League games due to José Mourinho’s suspension, it gave me a moment to ponder an all important question…What would José do?

Real Madrid was sloppy to start this week’s Champions League game against Ajax Amsterdam.  The passes were slow and inaccurate, the defense looked shaky and they couldn’t retain possession for more than a few minutes.  It begged the question, what would José do?!  Karanka demonstrated as he paced the touch line, shouting instructions to the players.  There were no cell phone instructions and José was in a darkened VIP box, so there were no secret hand signals.  Karanka knew exactly what José would do and it worked.  24 minutes in and Real Madrid was scoring a perfect team goal.  Since Karanka clearly understands José and executes his ideas with perfection, should other coaches think…what would José do?

Let’s start with André Villas-Boas, a José protégée.  As a young coach, facing an aging team chosen by a wealthy Russian, it was clear the players needed a wakeup call after a slow start to the season.  One has to wonder if he asked the question “what would José do”.  Answer:  “Hmm…I have several Spaniards on my team.  What if while one of them is being questioned in Spanish, he says that some of his teammates are slow?”  Fernando Torres claims his comments were mistranslated.  Villas-Boas says the team will investigate, but the only thing that has happened is that the “slower” players in question started scoring.  

On Tuesday, Carlos Tevez allegedly refused to play for Manchester City in a Champions League game.  He claims he told Mancini that he wasn’t feeling well.  This flu naturally started after he was left on the bench to start the game.  Mancini isn’t a José protégée, but should he ask “what would José do”.  Answer:  Suspend Tevez while you smile and be coy.  The fans, owners and players will stand by you.  So far so good for Mancini!

Steve Bruce is also facing a dilemma.  Titus Bramble was arrested early Wednesday morning for attempted sexual assault and possession of a Class A substance.  Bramble was previously involved in a rape case along with his brother (who was eventually convicted).  He was stupid enough to act with a witness (the taxi driver questioned Bramble’s behavior and drove to the police station), plus he was carrying an illegal substance.  All that and he was supposed to be at practice in a few hours.  What would José do?  Answer:  Send him packing!

José himself is facing his own situation.  Lass Diarra is under investigation in a tax fraud probe related to some of his transfer fees.  He said on his twitter account that he will “continue to quietly devote myself to my profession and Real Madrid”.  He also stated “I have no doubt about the ability of the justice system of my country to establish my innocence”.  What did José do for a player who is obviously struggling with a personal issue but continues to work hard?  Answer:  Start him on Sunday against Espanyol.  Lass had been pulled early the other week in favor of Mesut Özil, but the boss gave him another chance (this time alongside Özil) as well as a boost of support.  Lass didn’t let him down and worked hard throughout the game.

Love him or hate him, José is a character and I, for one, would love to be able to ask him – what would you do?

A.J. Nelson can be found on Twitter @FootieObsessed