Holy Madrid!

[TeamBestBud]

Days after signing Kaka, they also get Christiano Ronaldo!. I thought they would stop pursuing Ronaldo after they grabbed Kaka but I guess not...



http://tsn.ca/soccer/story/?id=281527

[bubbley]

holy shit they get paid

[TeamBestBud]

That's just the transfer fees. From what I understand it is basically giving Madrid the rights to sign them to a contract. Kaka is supposed to command 12 mill this season and Ronaldo probably more.


Also heard rumours of them going after David Villa?...

[mac_82]

Crazy. If they are going to play in Toronto it is almost worth the $150 tickets. IF.

[torob]

Because of a pre-contract Ronaldo had with Man U, Madrid will be fined 30 million euros if they DONT sign ronaldo...

Plus i heard he got hernia and will probably have to do surgery, + miss pre-season training

[Trini]

big $$ spending by Madrid once again.

but big names don't automatically translate into winning.

[cdnsir]

Kaka and Ronaldo!? That is insane! Can't wait to watch them play next season.

[krazykhoja]

I'm sad to see Ronaldo leave United...but I'm very curious to see who will be signed to replace him.

The drive for five is once again alive, next year we'll take it all & all other teams will fall!!

[msommers]

Originally posted by cdnsir
Kaka and Ronaldo!? That is insane! Can't wait to watch them play next season.

x2!

Found this fucking ridiculous


According to accountancy firm Deloitte, Madrid earned 365.8 million euros (C$565.6 million) compared to second-place United's 324.8 million euros (C$402.2 million).

And I thought Manchester was rich as hell, wow!

[SI_futbol]

it says they put in a bid, and that utd confirmed the fact they would consider it. I dont think he's 100% signed?? they said they would leave it up to sir alex or something

that was my understanding

[ronaldo]

Originally posted by TeamBestBud
Also heard rumours of them going after David Villa?...

he turned down an offer from Chelsea because he prefers to play for Madrid:dunno:

[D_2K]

80 million pounds? what a fucking whore

[max_boost]

No wonder these soccer teams can afford to pay such high transfer fees, they make so much money! :nut:

[Marsh]

Originally posted by msommers


x2!

Found this fucking ridiculous



And I thought Manchester was rich as hell, wow!

Man U has more cash flow though because Madrid has higher expenses, thats why Man U is considered 'richer'

[ronaldo]

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=654291&sec=europe&cc=5901

according to Ramon Calderon (president of Real last year) the deal was done last year and they just waited to release it till now...

[Oz-]

Originally posted by Marsh


Man U has more cash flow though because Madrid has higher expenses, thats why Man U is considered 'richer'

Not sure how you consider Man U with more cash flow when they have about 700 M Pounds of debt.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/manutd/5130064/Manchester-United-debt-soars-to-700m-despite-record-season.html

Madrid is similar to a public trust, so their financing also comes at very favorable terms. Richest TV deal around ($220ish M USD/year), that is almost double of Man U.

Another reason the players love going to Spain is the tax incentive for the first 5 years of income. Instead of the 40% range they drop down to like 25% income tax. Another good item for some non-EU players that they get for playing for Madrid or any other spanish club..is that after 3 years they can apply to be naturalized Spanish citizens. In the end they can bypass the non-EU player limit on other clubs rosters.

As for the OP, this is good to see Madrid starting to go for the top players and moving away from the middle of the pack dutch guys they have picked up over the years.

Watch for Van Der Varrt, Robben and maybe even Schneider to be sold (hopefully for some good value). Caledron fucked up beyond belief with who he brought in for both coaches and players. Perez will hopefully avoid the Zizou vs Pavons arguement, but is presidency will be determined by his ability to get a holding midfielder (Redondo and Makele were amazing there) and another central defender.

Hala Madrid!!

[cam_wmh]

Let the douchebag go. His pre-madonna d.b flair was becoming such an exhausting distraction.

Macheda will start to fill in for the time off that Rooney, and (hopefully he signs), Tevez.

Carlos & Wayne would be two of the most ferocious & tenacious striker tandems on the planet.

Plus the money is a phenomenal boost to Sir Alex' transfer coffers. I really hope he can pursue Ribbery to leave Bayern.

[Jlude]

Originally posted by Trini
big $$ spending by Madrid once again.

but big names don't automatically translate into winning.

see NY Yankees

[Trini]

but will be an epic Barca VS Madrid next season:drool:

[kertejud2]

Real Madrid's problem for about 7 seasons has been defense. So what do they do? Sign 2 attacking midfielders.

It will be fun to watch them learn the hard way that you can't win games 6-5.



I imagine that Man U will use the $ (at least the money the Glazer's don't use to pay of their debt) to get Benzema, I have a feeling Chelsea will beat them out for Ribery.

[Oz-]

Originally posted by kertejud2
Real Madrid's problem for about 7 seasons has been defense. So what do they do? Sign 2 attacking midfielders.

It will be fun to watch them learn the hard way that you can't win games 6-5.

If you notice that Madrid hasn't done much in Europe since they got rid of Makalele and even before then Redondo. But even the CB stalwart during those times was Fernando Hierro, now they have Cannavaro with Pepe...Cannavaro is on the wrong side of 35 and Pepe needs some help. Sergio Ramos was brought in for a CB position but he shines as the RB.

I still contend that Redondo and Makalele allowed the Galacticos to keep on the attacking side of the field.

Hopefully Fiorentino understands that making the most money in the world for an FC isn't the best thing to do. CL final is in Madrid next year, so reaching and winning that final will be the goal. Anything else will likely result in Pelligrini being fired.

[kertejud2]

When they got rid of Makelele they lost ball winning and transition from defense to attack. When Man U last won their treble they had Keane, when Arsenal was on top they had Vieira, Barelona has Xavi who's grown into the role etc.

You're definitely right, they haven't replaced Makelele with that guy who can take away all the options in front of the box and get the ball from defense to attack. Its a team that has defenders and attackers and neither wants anything to do with one another, no team can win with an attitude like that no matter what players they get to fill either role.

[Oz-]

Karim Benzema now going to Real Madrid as well. Wonder if they will get rid of Robben or not. Still haven't seen much of a holding MF or a stalwart for the D.

[Bladeh]

They bought a possible defensive mid in Raúl Albiol for 15 million euros.

I still think Barca will still piss on them in the league.

[borN]

Originally posted by Bladeh
They bought a possible defensive mid in Raúl Albiol for 15 million euros.

I still think Barca will still piss on them in the league.

I sure hope so. I love Kaka and his play, and I do admit Ronaldo is skilled....but god do I hate that guy.


There should be some intense and insane Madrid Barca matches

[Oz-]

Originally posted by Bladeh
They bought a possible defensive mid in Raúl Albiol for 15 million euros.

I still think Barca will still piss on them in the league.

Completely forgot about Albiol....he is being presented today at 21:00 CET (12 MST). The presentation for Kaka had over 25,000 people in attendance.

Another rumor that is starting up in the Spanish papers is that they will be going after Maicon from Inter. That would make 5 big players during this transfer season.

[r3ccOs]

Real Madrid -- Over Promised and Under Delivering

I have no problems with the process of which the team procures their players, as most players actuality want to play for the Royal club.

Their playing system however, I find changes far too often due to mangerial changes and the lack of overall centrla midfield strength.

At one point the playing potential of the team was charged with superstar talent ranging from carlos, becks, zidane, figo and ronaldo... but even with their collaborative skill often didn't find the fluid play that is often seen with other top teams such as Barca, Arsenal, Liverpool, Juventus, or AC Milan.

I think its too many superstars with too many ego's with too many coaching/management changes to allow the type of contigency to go consistant year to year.

That being said, the pickup of all these dutch players in the last few years, coupled with their strong spanish players will bring the best out of the club, as much did the Rijkards and Kliverts did for Barca.

Kaka might be the man to make all the difference, and honestly though C' Ronaldo has some incredible talent and flare, I think Kaka will be the more effect pickup of the two, especially in La Liga where everyone has magical feet.

They also have some incredibly hard working talent, such as Ramos, Robben, Sneijder, Pepe and Drenthe which I think can be utilized in a more effectively in playing a "total" football system that has been ever so effective for Barca since the Cruyff days.

Anyways, it'll be a good season to watch either the progress or regression of Real Madrid.

Player to watch IMO is Drenthe... he has all the makings and talent of Edgar Davids w/o the controversies

[Rocky]

Real Madrid's most underrated signing this season is that of Manuel Pellegrino, IMO; the ex-Villareal coach who loves an attacking and possession based style (like the one purported by Arsenal and Barcelona style teams). With their incredible purchasing power and player additions, as much as I want to see this Galacticos 2 experiment fail, I have to admit it looks very promising.

The major concern is how long Madridistas can go without winning. They've seen their club splash unruly amounts of money and they now own several of the best players in the world. New coaches and new players, especially of this kind of sweeping scope, require a lot of time to develop and adjust... if Barcelona goes on to win another Primera and/or CL over Real in 09-10, I doubt they will support Perez and his second Galacticos era for very long. Then the threads will unravel.

I'm interested to see who stays, too. I don't see guys like Sneijder, Robben, Van der Vaart, sticking around to play second-team football. The one name I would like to see leave is Huntelaar, and although I don't see it happening, I would dream to see him in an Arsenal kit. Go Gunners :D

[Dumbass17]

can someone post the schedule for soccer in sept in madrid? i suck at the internet

[Rocky]

I don't believe the La Liga or Champions League schedules are out just yet. Might explain the difficulty you had finding them.

http://www.realmadrid.com/cs/Satellite/en/Home.htm

Keep up to date with their official site in the meanwhile. And be sure to watch them toy around with Toronto FC on August 7th :D