Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho (who was in the news last month for poking Barcelona assistant coach Tito Vilanova in the eye) attributed his team's loss to Levante on Sunday to his players not being comfortable with the "dirty side" of soccer.

Mourinho, whose team played much of the game with only 10 men after Sami Khedira got sent off for a second yellow card, blasted the Levante style of play.

"I don't want to take anything away from Levante's merit," Mourinho said. "As always, here at their home they let them do as they want and they do it very well. I only have to congratulate them for being clever because they know how to provoke, they know how to fake it, they know how to gain time, they know how not to give the ball, they know all this which is also soccer. And here I can agree that our players are not at ease in this environment.

"We have players who are very good playing on big stages where they play soccer for the soccer and they come here and they are not able to adapt to the situation. I don't want to use the word, I am not sure if the word is rude, if it is it's not my intention but I can't find another -- the dirty side of soccer, you know: the faking, the provocation, gaining time, not giving the ball."