Mourinho worried by lack of goals

Mourinho worried by lack of goals

Published Sep. 26, 2010 1:51 p.m. ET

Jose Mourinho admitted his concern at Real Madrid's lack of success in front of goal this season after seeing them drop two points at Levante.

Promoted Levante had conceded 10 goals in their opening four matches - the worst record in the Primera Division - but they held Madrid to a 0-0 draw at the Ciutat de Valencia to help knock Mourinho's men off top spot.

It was a frustrating night for Madrid, who bossed the game and peppered the Levante goal with shots and crosses but could find a no way through a well-organised and determined home defence.

Madrid's inability to make their chances and domination count is not a new thing this season, with Mourinho's side having only netted eight goals in their six league and Champions League matches despite having the opportunities to score many more times, and the Portuguese knows it is a pressing problem.

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"We created so many chances, some very good, and obviously I'm worried because you need to score to win," said Mourinho.

"Every point counts, but for us every game we play is one we have to win. So these are two points less than we could have. We're not happy about earning only one point because we must win every match."

He added: "Defensively we are a very solid team, we have only conceded one goal in six official games. There is no problem tactically, but we aren't scoring. It's not due to the quality of the players because we all know they are players with lots of goals in them, but at this moment we can't score. That's my only concern."

Mourinho again started with an attacking quartet of Cristiano Ronaldo and Gonzalo Higuain - who between them scored 53 of Madrid's 102 league goals last season - supported by summer signings Angel De Maria and Mesut Ozil.

In the second half the former Inter Milan coach introduced Pedro Leon and Karim Benzema in a bid to to break the deadlock, but they were unable to find a way through.

Leon pushed his claims for a possible starting berth with an enterprising display and he could be an option if Mourinho decides to shake things up.

Mourinho said: "If we change the team around we might not create so many chances, but maybe we will create two and score two.

"We have the balance, we have the creativity. If you don't have quality players who can finish it off you have problems...this isn't a problem I have. We have quality strikers. It's a question of (scoring) streaks. It's not normal that our players need so many chance to score a goal, or not, like this time."

Aside from not being able to put the ball into the net, though, Mourinho was keen to praise his side for their performance against Levante, saying: "The team have had a positive attitude, they fought until the last second. I'm not a coach who reproaches a player for missing a goal, but someone who prefers to give confidence and calm.

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