Of buying, selling and injuries
Last pick
Real Madrid is done with the transfer market. Real’s DG, Jorge Valdano, revealed yesterday that Mesut Özil is the final summer recruit for the club, therefore putting an end to our transfer transactions. Speaking at the official unveiling of Özil, Valdano clearly stated that the club’s movement in the summer transfer market is now closed. He said:
We have now closed the signings for this coming season. We have made a great effort to rejuvenate the team and we are very pleased to complete this objective.
However, Valdano admitted that they will have to sell players between now and the time when the transfer window closes, saying that they “must streamline the workforce and this will be done in the coming days”. When asked whether Real would want to add another striker to the squad as there were only two specialized strikers in the 26-man squad, Valdano said that the second striker position would be filled in by the likes of Canales, Ronaldo and the former Bremen man Özil and that Mourinho himself had not asked for one.
Jose Mourinho has worked with players from the quarry during the pre-season and is very comfortable with them. He is also very pleased with the completion of the signing of Özil.
At no time had he asked the club for a striker. With the arrival of Özil, we have a player who can play in different positions.
But he insisted that none of the Spanish players will be sold because of the restriction imposed on clubs by the federation. He said:
We have 26 players right now, so we need to lighten the squad and it will happen in the coming days. This position does not affect the Spanish players currently on our books.
Diarra press conference
Following in his teammates’ footsteps, Mahamadou Diarra praised Jose Mourinho’s work ethic and discussed his personal motivation during Wednesday afternoon’s press conference.
Mahamadou Diarra: "I will work hard and fight for my spot on this squad"
Mourinho:
Jose Mourinho is a winner. He always wants his teams to be the best physically-speaking and to play the prettiest football. He is a great tactician and knows what to do with the ball.
Training:
We are training twice a day and the ball has come into play in almost every session. I think it’s great for the team.
Real Madrid career:
I will work hard and fight for my spot on this squad.
Recap
The last time I made a post was before the Valencia game. It feels like a long time back though it has been only a couple of weeks or by speaking football two match-days during which we beat Valencia comprehensively and then beat Zaragoza not so convincingly, something that has been a part and parcel of this season. And during these past two weeks a lot has happened and I am sorry that I couldn’t keep you posted as and when the shit came in. Not that you care. But anyhoo, the fact is that I’m in my last few weeks of my days as a engineer-in-the-making and it has been sort of tight, you know, with my end-semester examinations and stuff.
So what has happened since the Valencia win? The clever way out would be to say a lot. Yes of course a lot has happened. Firstly, Raúl and Kaká returned to training and both were included in the Squad List that traveled to Zaragoza. Especially with all the news about Kaká faking it (no pun intended), it was essential for Manuel Pellegrini and the player himself to see some action after a 45-day hiatus. Raúl meanwhile, was out since the Barça game but recovered just in time to make the cut. But neither of them started the game. Pellegrini preferred to use the same line up that he used against both Almería and Valencia with Guti and Van der Vaart playing alongside Xabi and Gago – a move that left Esteban Granero fuming. Apparently, the young Spaniard who hasn’t started a game since the win over Atlético (?) only because of his poor form was spotted venting his anger over the manager’s decision to leave him out again only to be consoled and pacified by the veteran Malian Mahamadou Diarra. The Offside had the incident well covered and to get a better insight of the situation click here. One interesting point that Corey mentioned was the fact that both Diarra and Dudek are considered to be great motivators for the rest of the squad. It is not only the manager who has to motivate the players, its also the senior members of the squad. If you look at Van der Vaart’s and Kaká’s celebrations after their goals against Almería and Zaragoza you will understand what I am talking about. And as far as the Granero situation itself goes, I feel that he has all the rights to be frustrated but it is only a fact that he has only himself to blame. Real Madrid is not about fielding stars – but only about fielding the best players on form in the line up. If Granero is better than Xabi in training then it is Granero who will play. And I hope he does get back his place in the line up.
Next came the game at La Romareda. Real were dealt with a blow with just 15 minutes into the game. The ever physical Zaragoza got their first victim of their game when Rafael van der Vaart went out injured to be replaced by a somewhat half-fit Raúl. The first half ended scoreless but within five minutes of the second half we went ahead thanks to the super-sub. It is a fact that El Capitan, who was injured again during his cameo, was to be replaced by Benzema just before he scored but thankfully it came only after we went ahead.
The second blow to Zaragoza came when Contini was shown a red card for an alleged elbow on Pipita. Real were ahead both on goals and on head count and when we thought we’ve sealed the game they drew level through Colunga who latched on to a through ball from Aguilar which dissected our defense to beat Casillas scoring into an empty net. It was a vital blow both to the game and to the little chance that we have of lifting the title. And we needed a miracle to win as Zaragoza decided to play 9 men in defense with only Colunga lurking forward.
And was Jesus’ own son who came down to save us. Kaká who hadn’t played a single game for 45 days and has just gotten back to full training was brought on by Pellegrini in the 78th minute. His first touch of the ball was a super shot on Roberto’s goal which was saved. And within 5 minutes of that shot, Cristiano spotted the Brazilian inside their box and supplied him with a good pass that he finished in a Kaká-esque fashion.
Real Zaragoza 1-2 Real Madrid. One point behind Barcelona.
A clinical examination and MRI later revealed that the captain has a Grade II sydnemosis ankle sprain that will keep him sidelined for at least four weeks basically ruling him out for the season while a similar examination and MRI on the left thigh of Rafael van der Vaart revealed that the player has Grade I-II tear on his left femoral biceps that will keep him sidelined for at least three weeks. It was also feared that Rafa might miss the World Cup but later it was revealed that he would recover sooner than expected.
On the other hand, rumors were all around that the captain has played his last game for Real as his season came to an premature end. Marca later reported that it is in the Captain’s hands to decide whether to stay or not. It is a similar situation with Guti as he too revealed that this season would most probably be his last with Real. But rumors have it that Guti will continue for one more season. Only time can answer these questions.
Someone else who is bound to leave next season is Metzelder who revealed sometime back that he will see out his contract here and would probably look at a career back home in Germany. Sttutgart, Wolfsburg and Schalke are potential suitors with the latter being the latest team on pursuit of the veteran defender. And that leaves only Dudek and Diarra as the two remaining veterans on the side.
Other rumors linking players out of the club are Bayern Munich’s interest in Arbeloa, and Arsenal’s interest in Lass. Both seem too far fetched to me as both have vital roles to play in the side. Thereby I am rubbishing all rumors that say that Lass is unhappy at Real. It is only fair to Gago that Lass sits out his time. Gago did it in the first half of the season and now its the Frenchman’s turn.
And as far as players coming in are concerned, we’re pursuing every big star in the World. Latest are Ronaldo’s recommendation in Patrice Evra, Ashley Cole, David Silva, Franck Ribery blah blah blah…
And that brings the end of this post. It was good to go through the past two weeks for they have been good – you know – especially with Barcelona getting kicked in Milan and stuff. Let us hope that things only get better in the future.
Para Siempre Blanco!
Hala Madrid!!
Freaky injury worries galore – Getafe pre-preview
Kaka to Diarra: "Welcome to the lame-ass-injury league." Drenthe: "DUDE, Wait for me!" Benzema (to himself): "Where the hell are Guti and Lass?"
¡Hola!
In what one can call a Madridista’s nightmare, Real Madrid are going through a phase in which all its players are either falling injured or having “gastroentitis”.
On Monday and Tuesday Kaká, Diarra, Benzema and Drenthe worked out in the gym along with Pepe. Lass also trained indoors on Monday but on Tuesday was sent home with gastroenteritis. Marcelo has missed every session this week as he has traveled to Brazil to attend to personal matters. And when we thought things couldn’t get worse Guti suffered a blow to his left quadriceps and now has a contracture on the muscle. Yesterday, things got even worse when we heard that an MRI performed at Sanitas confirmed that Lass has left ankle synovitis, which will require medical treatment and physiotherapy until it has healed. So that just means no Lass, Kaká, Benzema, Guti, Marcelo, Drenthe, Pepe and Diarra for Getafe leaving us with a very few choices.
And that means, Chelsea’s £10m target Rafael van der Vaart will get yet another deserved start at the Coliseum. He discussed what is left of the season for Real Madrid with AS. After speaking about the title hopes and the game against Gijón, he said this:
I love hearing that people want me to continue playing here. I want to stay on and help this team win titles. I returned home on Saturday with the noise of all the applause still ringing in my ears. I can play well when I play frequently. I am playing often now, but I know I can improve.
Abel Hernandez (Palermo, ITA) and James Rodriguez (Banfield, ARG). Ever heard of them? They’re linked with Real.
And over to Getafe, our most dangerous Derby rivals, a team even more dangerous than Barça themselves at least according to Marca. A busy week of Derbies starts when Real Madrid face Getafe at El Coliseum on Thursday at 20:00 CET. The derby against Atletico will follow at the Bernabéu on Sunday at 21:00.
Generally when I write a preview for any Real Madrid-Getafe game it’d generally have a lot of “its the return of…” or “… will play against his former club” stuff. But this time I’ve chosen not to do so. Getafe will be without Miguel Torres, Roberto Soldado and Cata Diaz – three of their most important players.
GETAFE SQUAD LIST:
Goalkeepers: Óscar Ustari, Jordi Codina
Defenders: Mané, David Belenguer, Mario Álvarez, Fabio Celestini
Midfielders: Jaime Gavilán, Juan Albín, Manu del Moral, Rafa López, Pedro Ríos, Daniel Parejo, Derek Boateng, Miku, Pedro León
Forwards: David Cortés, Javier Casquero, Adrián González
Real like I mentioned earlier are set to miss out on Lass, Kaká, Benzema, Guti, Marcelo, Drenthe, Pepe and Diarra. So that means Lady Gago might make a start. AS reports that Lass is upset because he was substituted during the break on Saturday and which is why he hasn’t trained this week naming several lame injuries as the reason. Guti, who was almost as pathetic as he was against Alcorcon, too might miss the game through a lame ass injury. But I have a strange feeling he won’t. And we all know why Benzema and Kaká are not playing these days. Pepe is genuinely injured. Diarra, well, who gives a damn about Diarra anyways. And that leaves little Marcel. I wonder what has gone haphazard with his life. I just want him to settle everything and get back to training ASAP. We need him.
Manuel Pellegrini will name the squad list later in the day, but it is kind of obvious who will make the cut now. All I want to know is whether he will risk Marcos Alonso tonight.
REAL MADRID SQUAD LIST (Unofficial):
Goalkeepers: Casillas, Dudek
Defenders: Sergio Ramos, Albiol, Garay, Metzelder, Arbeloa, Marcos Alonso
Midfielders: Gago, Granero, Xabi Alonso, Van der Vaart, Mosquera
Forwards: Raúl, Cristiano Ronaldo, Higuaín
Barça won last night and Ibra scored, so strange things can happen in the league. And that means we are second and there is added pressure on us. We need to stay focused and have got to do the job against Getafe. The last time we played there it ended up being a nightmare. We lost 3-1. Schuster was fired. Sneijder, Pepe and Miguel Torres got injured. And Javier Saviola scored. By no means it is a happy hunting ground for us. We just have to go out there and win the game irrespective of all that has happened before. Its time to bury our past and look ahead. Three points is what we need.
As far as the line up is concerned, I would love to see Raúl start instead of Gago. But I don’t see that happening. Higuaín is in fine form. Ronaldo wasn’t all that good on Saturday but I don’t see that form continuing. Xabi has been pivotal and will continue to be. The defense has been good except for minor slip ups and more importantly luck has favored us. Lets hope the players utilize it and get us back to where we belong – the top of the table.
Probable Starting XI: Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Albiol, Garay, Arbeloa, Gago, Granero, Xabi Alonso, Van der Vaart, Higuain, Cristiano Ronaldo
Prediction: Getafe 1-2 Real Madrid
Para Siempre Blanco!
Hala Madrid!!
Champions League is back – Lyon pre-preview
Hola,
Now that its just down to two points between us and the league leaders Barcelona, its time to focus on the Champions League fixture. That’s right Liverpool fans. The UEFA Champions League. The mother of all club tournaments.
It will be Olympique Lyonnais vs Real Madrid in the 20:45 CET (1:15 IST) kick off at Stade Gerland as the home side will be looking to complete a hat-trick of home victories when the teams contest the opening leg of their first knockout round tie. Lyon beat Madrid on the last two occasions the clubs met in France although Real are unbeaten away in this season’s competition.
Real, as we all know very well, are seeking their first quarter-final place since the 2003-04 season and have already won once on French soil this season, coming from behind to defeat Marseille 3-1 in the final group game which ensured first place in Group C. Like us, Lyon too claimed 13 points in their section but finished second behind Group E winners Fiorentina. The French side have been knocked out at this stage in the past three seasonss, going down to Barca last year.
Coincidentally or should I say tragically Real have lost their last three two-legged contests with French opposition – going down on away goals to Monaco in the 2003-04 quarter-finals and losing to PSG in the last eight both in the 1992-93 UEFA Cup and the 1993-94 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup.
Manuel Pellegrini though has had better luck with his counterpart Puel whenever they’ve faced each other. He got the better of Puel when they met previously in the Champions League in the 2005-06 group stage. Pellegrini’s Villarreal earned a goalless draw at Puel’s Lille before a 1-0 home win earned them progress as group winners and eliminated Lille. Puel has had little joy against Spanish sides, suffering a 4-2 aggregate defeat by Mallorca in the 1999-00 UEFA Cup fourth round while at Monaco. With Lille though he enjoyed a 1-0 win against Sevilla in the 2004/05 UEFA Cup group stage but suffered a round of 16 elimination by the same opponents in the 2005-06 edition. As a player too he hasn’t had that much luck against Spanish opposition.
Four players return – Squad list announced
Hola,
The squad list for Espanyol has finally been announced and we have some good news there. Garay and Metzelder are the only ones who are out with injuries with the former just suffering from flu that requires some rest. All is well otherwise. That means Higuain, Diarra, Lass, Van der Vaart and Gago have recovered from their injuries and will be able to play against Espanyol. And of course Cristiano Ronaldo’s suspension still stands.
REAL MADRID SQUAD LIST
Goalkeepers: Casillas, Dudek
Defenders: Ramos, Arbeloa, Albiol, Marcelo, Drenthe
Midfielders: Lass, Xabi Alonso, Kaka, Guti, Granero, Diarra, Van der Vaart, Gago
Forwards: Higuain, Raul, Benzema
AS says that Real will use the same line up as the one it used in Deportivo and that El Siete will start, something he hasn’t done since the Valladolid game in October when he grabbed a brace. This probably is a good move. Pellegrini wouldn’t want to rush in Pipita considering the fact that it has only been a few days since he has started training. Also, Guti and Arbeloa are set to undergo a late fitness test to see whether they can feature in the eleven or not. All that we will know only at kick off.
Espanyol haven’t won in the Santiago Bernabeu since 1995/96. De la Peña, Callejon, Moises Hurtado, Shunsuke Nakamura, Forlin and Tamudo are all I know.out injured. Chica is suspended. So that takes out five of the ten Espanyol players. Juan Tapiador though feels Real Madrid need to pay close attention to Coro, Luis Garcia and Osvaldo.
Pepe’s injury has made things interesting
Pepe is out for the rest of the season. This probably might be the hundredth time you are hearing this week alone but still it is something that we might have to hear every week but in different ways. So you better get used to it. And since it is the first week after the horrific injury everyone has been speaking a lot about the lanky center back and the psosible replacements. And this I feel has made things interesting. There will be some transfer window action featuring Real Madrid and it won’t be all about selling.
“Real Madrid will feel Pepe’s absence,” warned former Real Madrid coach Juande Ramos in an interview on Canal+ La Liga. The former Real Madrid coach spoke a lot in favor about Pepe and how important and critical the defender was to his Real Madrid side back when he was the manager. He said:
When I was coaching [Real Madrid], in 17 matches with him [Pepe] we only conceded 5 goals. In the matches after he was suspended against Getafe, our average rose to 3 goals scored against us per match. This is an injury of which Madrid should take note. If another defender were to make an error, Pepe would always be there to correct it.
Which I think is so true. Pepe’s absence will be felt. No doubt about it. But that will only be until we find the apt replacement whether within the club or from the window. Juande Ramos though did not get into the issue of whether Real should sign players in the winter transfer window to cover for the injured Portuguese. He added:
Now, Real Madrid have a spectacular team and it is up to the current coach to decide whether it is necessary to sign or not.
Madrid have been linked to Chelsea defender Ricardo Carvalho and Aston Villa defender Carlos Cuellar but reports emanating from Spain insist that Sergio Ramos is being seen as the perfect replacement for Pepe. Juande Ramos also validated Sergio Ramos’ ability to step into the central defensive position should the need arise.
Real Madrid to Pepe
Shortly after hearing the official diagnosis, Pepe received a swarm of “Get well” wishes from his teammates.
Raul:
Pepe, keep your chin up. You have all our support and we wish you a speedy recovery.
Casillas:
Pepe, we love you very much. All are thoughts are with you. You are a great player and person. This team will fight for you. Get well soon.
Guti:
You have our full support so that you get well as quickly as possible. You need to return soon. We miss you, Pepe.
Ramos:
We are here for you, brother. The greats always come back, and you are one of them. We hope to see you soon. Strength and patience.
Cristiano Ronaldo:
Stay strong, Pepe. Come back soon. We love you a lot.
Kaka:
I am sure you will return soon because you are strong and because we your teammates are going to help you.
Xabi Alonso:
Pepe is very important to this team as both a person and player, which is why we hope he returns as soon as possible. We are here for anything he needs.
Ins and Outs | S01P05
#1
Ruud van Nistelrooy seems to be topping our charts every single week including this one. He is the only player to have appeared in all the Ins and Outs posts and is most likely to be the number one departure when the transfer window opens in January, if not the only departure. And today he is linked with again a host of clubs, most of them being from where he came here, England.
It all started when Van Nistelrooy revealed his ambition of being picked for the Dutch National Team – saying that the only way that would happen would be if he got more time on the pitch and less time in the gym. This drew the attraction of several clubs looking for a striker. First it was AS Roma who were interested in the Dutch veteran, looking for a loan move. Liverpool then got into the picture after their injury crisis. Arsenal who then had zero strikers available were seen as potential suitors for Rutegrus until Arsene laughed it off. Tottenham have always been a fan of van Nistelrooy but they find him too expensive. Man City are linked with everyone so he obviously is included. All of a sudden Fenerbahce wanted him in Turkey but then again the wage structure acted as a barrier. And now after Roma realised that £4million fee and £75,000-a-week wages was too much for a 34-year-old, Blackburn and Birmingham have been linked with the former Manchester United star. But Alex McLeish, Birmigham’s manager, insists that Van Nistelrooy is not one of his January targets but some random Slovakian is. So that leaves Blackburn Rovers left on the list. Fat Walrus, Sam Allardyce, is a fan of Ruud apparently and would be willing to give our man a chance at Ewood Park. Bolton, Birmingham, Sunderland and Fulham are also reported to be interested in the Dutchman’s services.
The player’s agent, Barry O’Connor, has remained diplomatic about the transfer rumours, saying that it is a private issue until Real Madrid decide on Van Nistelrooy’s future.
I don’t see him staying. No way!
Source: Several
Degree of genuineness: 8.0
Ins and Outs | S01P04
#1
I am back with Post#4 and do I have big news or what?! Cesc Fàbregas, yes the real one, is apparently a €50million January target for Real Madrid. According to The Mirror, both Barcelona and Real Madrid are preparing to enter into a January bidding war for the services of Cesc Fabregas, according to reports in the Spanish press.
According to them, Marca claims that the Arsenal skipper has made up his mind to leave the club at the end of the season, but both clubs are preparing massive bids to tempt Fabregas away in the next transfer window as Real Madrid, again according to them, are also on the look-out for a world class midfielder. And with Steven Gerrard considered too old, they consider Fabregas to be the ideal partner for Xabi Alonso.
But Arsenal insist that €50million is too much money for a single player and thus are willing to offload both Cesc and Ramsey to Real Madrid, if we are willing to buy of course.
Also, Barça who are considered to be the front runners in getting his signature have actually pissed off Arsenal ever since they stole Thierry Henry from them making Real the only potential suitors.
Source: The Mirror
Degree of genuineness: 2.0
Post-match comments
Jorge Valdano was satisfied with Real Madrid’s performance on Sunday despite the defeat against Sevilla. Real Madrid coach Manuel Pellegrini was disappointed that his team lost but assured that it would immediately right the ship. Real Madrid’s two center backs admit that the two goals conceded to Sevilla were products of defensive mistakes. Raul and Kaka considered Sunday’s match to be a hard-fought battle that was decided by isolated plays. One of the positive things about Real Madrid’s game in Seville was the return of Mahamadou Diarra to the starting lineup.
Valdano:
It could have gone either way until the last minute. It was a thrilling match. The team performed well as a whole and we had our chances. Sevilla has improved year after year and their fans stand by them one hundred percent.
Casillas kept us alive with two incredible saves. We win and lose as one. It isn’t appropriate to talk about players who are unavailable.
Pellegrini:
Two mistakes cost us the match, but we did have a chance to equalize. Sevilla are having a great run. They deserved to win. They had more scoring opportunities than we did.
It is important to be in the upper echelons of the table at this stage of the season. You cannot predict what will happen from here on out. You cannot be happy when you lose, but we made mistakes that resulted in goals. I think the match was decided by defensive mistakes. The fact that two relatively short players scored with their heads worries me.
Cristiano Ronaldo is an important player, but we built a team to compensate for players who are unavailable.
Albiol:
Losing is disappointing because we really believe we would win. It was a tough match that we had control of until giving up the first goal. We made a huge effort after equalizing and could have taken the lead.
We need to look ahead and try to correct our mistakes. We have a stoppage and must return with batteries fully charged. This is my first defeat as a Madridista, but we learn by losing and I am sure the team will recover.
Mahamadou Diarra to Realmadrid.com
Diarra has recovered from an injury which has kept him off the pitch during eight months. In an interview to Realmadrid.com, the midfielder talks about his recovery process and how happy he is to be able to help the team once more.
Are you happy now you’ve left behind such hard times?
I’m very happy right now. I work with the team and I can touch the ball normally.
How did you feel when the doctors told you the seriousness of your injury?
In fact, I knew there was something wrong with my knee before they told me. I tried to hold on a bit longer so I could help the team but my knee finally gave up and I had to undergo surgery. The knee was 80% broken. Both cartilages and the outer meniscus were broken. It was an extremely serious injury.
It’s the worst injury for a footballer.
Yes, it’s one of the worst things that can happen not only to footballers, but to anyone. We all depend on our knees because they’re one of the parts which bear the weight of the whole body. If they don’t work properly, even walking becomes difficult. Not to mention running.
Tell us about your recovery process.
It has been my worst time as a professional. They were very, very difficult moments. I was on crutches for the first two months, which was hard. Then I spent five or six months working on my own in the gym. Everything has been difficult. I hope to never go through these eight months again in my life. I don’t wish it to happen to any other footballer either.
During your recovery period, each small step forward must have been a happy moment…
Yes, it was. But it’s finally over and I’m happy. I work to gradually recover my strength. I’m happy that my knee is not giving me any problems and now I’m ready to help the team, which is what I want most.
An early morning brain wave
Its sometime around 0730 or 0800 or whatever here and I am up already. Hell I am getting no sleep. Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah. I could go on and on like this. But this isn’t about that. I’ve got a lot of other stuff to talk about
For the past few weeks or so I’ve been concentrating too much on the big names like Kaká, Cristiano Ronaldo, Franck Ribery and David Villa the former pair have been signed and the latter duo have been strongly linked with us. But what I seem to have forgotten already was the fact that we do have other players on our team who have been linked with moves away from the club (Six in-Nine out Policy of Florentino) and plus there are millions of other European quality players.
So without further adieu lets get rollin’…
This is what David Villa told the press following the game in Bloemfontein after again being quizzed about his future:
I have made my decision. My agent knows my wishes, and he is now working on that – so I am relaxed. There is no deadline on the subject, and I really do not have any more details as this whole thing is not totally dependent on me.
We are hearing this amongst the rumors that the striker wants to stay in Spain and that only Real Madrid and Barcelona are contenders to sign him. At the same time there have been other rumors as to the only club Villa would move to would be the one in which his La Roja strike partner Fernando Torres is in at the moment. Well, just because they celebrate every goal of theirs like they’ve just given birth to a new baby, it doesn’t mean… Hell.. what am I saying?! This is a future Madridista we’re talking about. But why is he linked with Barcelona?!?
Anyhoo, moving on, the next rumor is about an exit from the Bernabeu concerning a one Mahamadou Diarra who was sitting at home throughout last season nurtuting an injury. The Malian central midfielder has been linked with a move to Juventus who are very keen on the 28 year old. Diarra is said to have been recommended to the Bianconeri by Fabio Cannavaro. He knee injury is unlikely to scupper any potential deal.
Diarra admits he would be willing to discuss a move to Italy, but insists any such agreement will rest in the hands of his current employers which is ofcourse Real Madrid. Speaking to skysports.com he said:
I am feeling very well at the moment and I hope to come back even stronger next season. Real are recruiting a lot of big stars at the moment and I am looking forward to the next campaign.
Thats nice to hear. But he did have a few words to say about Juve:
Juve? They are a great side, one of the best in the world, so to be linked with them is fantastic.But to play there, I don’t know yet. We will have to wait and see what the new officials at Real have planned.
It is true that we are having an abundance (of players) in the middle of the park with Lass, Gago, De la Red, Kaka, Sneijder, Van der Vaart, Guti, Parejo, Javi Garcia which means that we will sell one or two or maybe send them on loan. Diarra is a good player. No doubt. And it is very obvious that he is our most mature defensive midfielder with the lesser mature being the likes of Lass, Gago and Javi Garcia. So do we sell him?
For sometime now The Offside guy has been whining to get to back the Cantaneros who are doing so well now at every other club (almost (OK, exaggeration)) other than Real Madrid. One such player who has been linked with us is Álvaro Arbeloa of Liverpool. The player has admitted that he would consider a return to Spain as he believes he has a point to prove in his homeland.And also there is this little fact that he has only one year left in his contract and Liverpool are close to signing a certain Glen Johnson who too plays in the same position as our young Cantanero. Anyhoo, Arbeloa has been talking and we too have been talking about a right sided player (God knows why). He told Elmundo while on international duty at the Confederations Cup:
I am happy at Liverpool, but I have something to prove in Spain as I did not show my best form in La Liga. One day, I’m sure I will return.
It is always nice to be linked to big teams – even to this Madrid side in a time of transition. They are working hard to build a great team.
I have one more year remaining on my Liverpool deal, but anything can happen. A contract renewal is in the air. I am contracted for one more year, but if Liverpool get an offer they will consider it. It is all in the hands of my agent.
If there is one Cantanero whom I would never want Real to sign it would be him. First of all he is cheap and second of all he has played for both Deportivo and Liverpool. And ofcourse there is obvious reason that we don’t need a Right sided defender who can do nothing but play on the Right side.
And if there is one Cantanero whom I want us to sign ASAP it would be Esteban Granero. But Getafe president Angel Torres has said that Granero would be made to stay for another year atleast despite being linked with swap deals to Valencia and Villareal.
Bayern Munich is confused. Der Kaiser Franz Beckenbauer is yeah, senile. Franck Ribery is AWESOME. Even though these three phrases don’t sum up to mean anything they are independently true.
It was Beckenbauer who told Bild that:
We discussed the issue at our last board meeting and we all agreed that, if he really wants to leave, then we will deal with the issue.
Immediately reports emanating from Spain suggested that Real are leading the chase for the sought-after Ribery by offering Rafael van der Vaart and Wesley Sneijder as makeweights in the deal which is SO BLOODY FOOLISH. And Zidane was quoted as saying:
We will do whatever it takes to make Ribéry come to Real Madrid. It is the voice of Florentino Perez and mine.
But then Bayern made all this just a little more than a speculation by releasing an official statement that said:
There is no such resolution by the advisory board of FC Bayern Munich AG which includes the issue of a sale of the player Franck Ribery. The transfer (sale) of a player does not need the approval of the advisory board, according to the constitution of the FC Bayern Munich AG board of directors. The FC Bayern Munich AG board of directors have made the overwhelming resolution that the player Franck Ribery is not for sale.
There are several reasons as to why you can love Arjen Robben and there are several more reasons why you can love Hans Robben, Arjen Robben’s father, who is also the Dutch International’s agent. The following is one amongst them. He told Dutch paper Algemeen Dagblad:
There are reports currently circulating on the internet that the agent of Arjen has confirmed there are talks with Spurs. But the only who is representing him is me and I don’t know anything about it. At the moment we are not in action with any other team than Real Madrid.
Robben Senior is adamant his son will not be playing under Harry Redknapp next season adding:
I even want to bet on a bottle of wine Arjen won’t play there.
Staying with England, Tottenham have put in a 30 million pound bid for Real Madrid trio, Arjen Robben, Gabriel Heinze and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar. Sportsmail revealed that Spurs chairman, Daniel Levy is in Madrid along with finance director Matthew Collecott to meet Florentino Perez.
Harry Redknapp’s priority this season is a winger, striker and left-back. The White Hart Lane boss has already gone about trying to get hold of another Madrid player, Ruud van Nistelrooy, but the Dutch striker’s wage demands are too high for the North London club.
F*ck you Tottenham! F*ck you Redknapp! F*ck you North London!
Oh talking about North London, we are apparently vying for the signature of Arsenal’s French full backs Bacary Sagna and Gaël Clichy. Sagna went from ‘not against’ Real deal to ‘deny any knowledge of link to Madrid‘. But then again why are we after a right back? And about the other Gunner, he straightway declared that Arsenal is his only club but at the same time he is flattered that he has been linked with Real Madrid.
Another player of ours who is linked with a move to England is Royston Drenthe. After Barry’s move to Man City the player has been linked with a move to Villa Park to play under Martin O’Neill. Villa have supposedly made a bid close to 5 million euros. Reject it immediately. Period.
Luis Antonio Valencia is still linked with Real Madrid. Its false. Don’t believe it.
I wouldn’t blame you if you haven’t heard of Luca Dürholtz. This is a kid who plays under-17 football with Bayer Leverkusen and is considered to be the next Bernd Schuster (ofcourse he has blonde hair). We are apparently ready to pay 700,000 for the youngster to lure him into Castilla. He is a German international at the U-16 level and plays offensive midfield.
Staying with Castilla, Real Valladolid are targeting Alberto Bueno, Miguel Torres and Dani Parejo. The wage structure of Dani Parejo though doesn’t match with his suitors. But one kid who will be staying at Real Madrid when he grows up will be World Champion Pablo Sarabia. The youngster has declared that his goal is to play at the Bernabeu.
Now that was a lot of rumors considering it being a single post. *Sigh*
I’ll make sure that it isn’t the case next time out. And yeah, Hala Madrid will be following a new format soon (tentatively from 1st of July). The changes will be obvious and so I am not going to list out all the changes and stuff.
Until then, Cheerios!
Para Siempre Blanco!
Hala Madrid!!
And the winner is Ruud van Nistelrooy!
Ruud van Nistelrooy was today presented with the Deporte Gredos de Guisando Award in recognition of his career in sports and humanitarian efforts.
“He’s a charming person,” said Jose Miguel Blazquez, Director of the Award committee who, along with Real Madrid doctor, Juan Carlos Hernandez, handed Van Nistelrooy the lucky jug. “Hopefully it will help me recover and have a good season. That’s the plan,” commented an appreciative Van Nistelrooy.
Past winners include singer Miguel Bose, actress Elsa Pataky, the current Primer Minister of Spain, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, and Real Madrid’s own Raul Gonzalez and Iker Casillas.
Shortly after receiving the Deporte Gredos de Guisando Award, Ruud van Nistelrooy spoke to Realmadrid.com about the day’s events and new Real Madrid coach, Manuel Pellegrini.
It’s great to be working with Diarra. We are going through similar situations and have been helping one another a lot. Doing this together makes all the effort much easier. I am still working hard to recover and I still have a few days left before going on vacation. I started running again and am happy I was able to. Running for the first time in seven months felt great. Pellegrini did a great job at Villarreal over the last few years. All those who know him and have worked with him only have kind words about him. Let’s see how everything goes, but I am sure it will all go well. This is a new era and we all start from scratch. My only thoughts now are on my knee and recovering as soon as I can so that I can get back to work.
To add to this good news, Ruud, Diarra and Ruben de la Red had are back. The first two jogged at the Valdebebas on their own whereas De la Red played a charity match for Fabio Celestini’s foundation.
Hala Madrid!!
Let the transfers begin…
Now that we have a new president, presidential adviser, director general, sporting director and a new manager its time to start off with rebuikding the squad. We still have about three months left but rebuilding a squad is no three month process. We need to have settled the squad issues by mid July atleast considering the fact that we have a new manager and a set of new players. Time to adapt is essential.
We all know who all we’ve been linked with. Right from Kaka, Ribery, Ronaldo, Ibrahimovic to David Villa, David Silva, Juan Mata, Xabi Alonso are supposedly our targets. Hopefully Pellegrini will first keep an eye on our defense before altering any other part of the team. He already has Garay at his disposal. The most likely exits are that of Dudek, Heinze, Saviola, Metzelder, Drenthe (on loan), Van der Vaart ( 😦 ) and some say even Sneijder and Marcelo might be sold. Personally Sneijder has had a poor season but I would never sell him. Lass, Gago and Diarra are fighting for the same position. So one of them should leave if we are planning on getting new midfielders. Thus we will also need one or two left backs. Miguel Torres and Sergio Ramos can play on the right. Both are young and good. A couple of SOLID central defenders. A couple of world class playmakers are needed and thats where the Galacticos policy comes into play, Raul and Ruud are 32 and 33 respectively. Hunter seems to have lost it. Pipita is just too good to be sold. So a world class striker is definitely needed. I am wondering about the roles of Guti and Salgado next season as well. Guti has an attitude problem. Salgado is a useless prick.
With so many problems already we need to decide on our team ASAP. What looks likely is we will have stars again. And along with them we will get more players who are much better than Pavons.
Excellence will return.
Hala Madrid!!
Official First Team and Castilla Photo 2008/09
Real Madrid had their official 2008/09 photo taken this morning. The first team was accompanied by Honorary President Alfredo di Stefano and Sporting Director Pedja Mijatovic. It is the first team photo with Lass, Huntelaar, Parejo, and Juande Ramos’ coaching staff.
First Team
Real Madrid Castilla had their official team photo taken for the second time this season on Thursday. Alfredo di Stefano Stadium hosted the event, which included Real Castilla President, Francisco Moreno Cariñena; President of Honor, Alfredo di Stefano; and Sporting Director, Pedja Mijatovic.
Castilla
Real Madrid’s academy is the heart and sould of the Club. Many important players in the history of Spanish football came from the youth system. One third of the current squad is made up by academy men -Raul, Guti, Casillas, Torres, Codina, De la Red, Javi Garcia, Parejo and Palanca-. This picture, taken a few minutes after they posed for the official team photo, proves it.
Real Madrid has always had a youth system and it was professionalized in the 1950s with initiatives such as the Social Tournament. De Felipe was the first of 50 academy players to become internationals for Spain. In total, they have all played 1,000 games for their country.
Spanish national coach Vicente del Bosque also came from Real Madrid’s youth system, just as Isidoro San Jose, Ricardo Gallego, Isidro Díaz or Rafael García Cortés, who currently work for the Club’s academy. But the most illustrious group of players to come from the youth system were those from La Quinta del Buitre. These men had the same values as legends like Ramon Moreno Grosso, Mateos, Velazquez, Santisteban, Benito and Camacho.
José Mª Gutiérrez “Guti” and Miguel Torres belong to different generations of players, but their run at the Club has been very similar. They both joined through the Social Tournament and they have played for every team in the Club. Iker Casillas joined with the Under-8 side and has become one of the most important players in the world. On the other hand, captain Raul joined when he was 15 years old, but his hard work and his devotion to the Club is such that it seems he’s been here all his life.
Jordi Codina, Javi Garcia and Ruben de la Red stood out on every team they played for and were promoted to the Second Division with Castilla. Dani Parejo is a quality player that has won an Under-19 European Championship and was briefly loaned out to Queens Park Rangers before Juande Ramos decided to bring him back to join the first team.
Miguel Palanca is a strange and curious case. He arrived at the Club last summer after growing up at Espanyol, but his devotion to Real Madrid is that of a true youth teamer.
We are apparently closing in on Lassana Diarra
Guillem Balague did say so a few days ago. He did say that we were vying with Manchester Shitty for the signature of Lassana Diarra. But now it is turning out to be true. Apparently Real Madrid are set to seal a deal for Portsmouth midfielder Lassana Diarra, according to Spanish sources. The former Chelsea and Arsenal man is said to be our solution for his namesake’s absence from the squad. I’m of course talking about the Malian Mahamadou Diarra, who recently had a surgery and would miss the rest of this season.
Lassana Diarra, who at one point of time was called ‘The next Makelele‘ has already shuffled between three sides since his move to Chelski from Ligue 1. He is currently in Portsmouth, to whom we are gonna pay up £9million to gain his services. He can play for us in the Champions League. According to Sky Sports Juande Ramos was quoted as saying:
The big players are already in the Champions League and cannot be signed. If the players do not have the quality, then we will miss them – the players have to be worth it. He (Lassana Diarra) is a player I know well, and I would like a player like Diarra here.
I don’t know to whom or where he said this but since its Sky Sports I think we can believe it. Within 48 hours an announce is supposedly going to be made regarding this. I’ll keep you posted on that.
Otherwise there is nothing much. Only a few rumours about Adam Johnson loving to be linked with a club like us and so on. Also Del Bosque isn’t ruling out a International comeback for Raul.
That’s about it. Until next time,
Hala Madrid!!
Mahamadou Diarra out for the rest of the season
The Mali player underwent surgery recently and will miss six to nine months due to a serious knee injury.
It all began on 11 October, when Mahamadou Diarra suffered a parameniscitis on his right knee during a match between Mali and Chad. He reappeared on 30 October with Real Madrid for the King’s Cup fixture against Real Unión, but he got injured again on 30 November. Mahamadou Diarra has a Grade IV chondral injury on the inner and outer femoral condyle, and on the lateral tibia plateau. He also has a complex tear on the outer meniscus.
With two down, I wonder how many more to go.
Hala Madrid!!
The Saint is going nowhere as The Hunter arrives
Okay. I know that this is really funny, but I’ve got to do my job and that is tell you people anything and everything that I can gather about Real Madrid. This is the latest. According to Sky Sports’ Spanish sources, Manchester City have failed with a transfer-record breaking bid to make Iker Casillas the highest paid footballer in the world. It seems the radio station Caden SER claimed that City were ready to pay the buy-out clause in Casillas’ contract – currently set at a staggering £128million. Then they offered to pay him up to £11million-per-season – which would see him picking up just short of £230,000 per week – dwarfing any deal paid to the world’s top players at present. However, it is believed Casillas rejected the overtures out of hand and therefore City had no need to make a formal offer to Real and there was little point in doing so unless the player wanted to move.
Klaas-Jan Huntelaar arrived in Madrid around noon on Wednesday, at which point he was driven to the Mirasierra Suites Hotel and then Sanitas-La Moraleja Hospital for his physical. He passed the medical tests he was submitted to by Real Madrid’s Medical Staff. He landed in Madrid at 12:40 and went straight to the Mirasierra Suites Hotel. A few minutes later, he headed towards Sanitas Hospital to have some medical examinations. The examinations consisted on several blood and urine tests, an electrocardiogram, a magnetic resonance, a radiological study and a clinical exploration. Carlos Díez, Head of Real Madrid’s Medical Staff said:
Tests determined Huntelaar is fit for the practice of sport. He is in optimum form. The medical exam and the reports of Dr. Van Dyck prove that the recovery stage of the injury he sustained is now over.
The Hunter himself is delighted to be on the verge of the big-money transfer and is looking forward to linking up with a number of his Dutch compatriots, including midfielder Wesley Sneijder. He said:
It is all as good as done. But we must speak about some minor details. Besides that we must also look each other in the eyes for the first time. That is important too. Sneijder was the first and then the others called me. It’s a dream come true and they’ve already told me to play at Madrid is the best for a footballer. I’m very happy right now, I suppose I will be even happier when I arrive at Madrid and can be with my new team-mates. I’m going to Real Madrid to grow as a player and fight with one of the biggest teams in Europe. Madrid are one of football’s most historical clubs and from now on I hope to make their fans happy by scoring many goals and winning titles.
Huntelaar will be officially presented at 13:00 CET on Thursday at the Presidential Balcony of the Santiago Bernabéu.
In the injury news column we have some bad news, Mahammadou Diarra is set to undergo surgery tn order to cure the knee problem he sustained on international duty in October. Scans have confirmed Diarra has suffered a recurrence of the knee injury and that he could be forced to go under the knife. It is feared the midfield powerhouse could be sidelined for up to six months with the problem ruling him out for the rest of the campaign. Ramon Calderon has admitted Diarra is facing up to the prospect of having surgery to correct the problem.
We are in a bad stage that is not logical and now it seems that Diarra will have to be operated on.
I’ll keep you posted as and when I get to know about anything else regarding these issues.
Till then,
Hala Madrid!!
Hala Bernardo!
Good morning Madridistas,
Hell, its a great morning. Not that many reasons but still it is a great morning. I was just reading Bernardo’s press conference prior to the match against Bilbao at home and I must say that I am all for this guy. The way he answers these press goofs is simply brilliant. Those who are interested please go through both Ramos to AS and Schuster Press Conference posts properly and your liking for him too will increase surely. All this started with Sergio Ramos saying to AS that he is feeling left alone on the right wing and hence all the problems seem to be backlashing at him. It is somewhat true. We do not have a player like Joaquin or someone who sticks to his wing thus helping out attacking wing backs like Ramos himself. We have been playing Higuain increasingly on the right and he hasn’t stayed there as much as anyone would’ve liked. He has been straying to the centre and our attack has shifted slightly to the center than from the wings. Thus Ramos is left exposed and if he attacks there is no sort of a cover up for him. The defensive midfielders in Diarra or Gago too have played very less and haven’t done that one thing when they did play. So I guess Schuster must try and solve that problem. Otherwise I guess we are perfectly fine.
Moving on, the Brazilian kid Douglas Costa says he dreams of playing in Spain. Manchester Cunts and us have been vying for the signature of this kid from Gremio speculated to be the next Ronaldinho. Though that title only means that Ronaldinho is old and is nothing to worry about we are looking out for kids who play good football and this guy seems to be one among them. I am looking forward to signing this Brazilian.
In other news the pursuit for Cristiano Ronaldo according to Calderon and Sky Sports News is officially over. No wonder. He has been sucking for United in the past few games. Surely he is coming here next season I think.
The squad list for Bilbao is out. Canna’s turn to stay out. Guti and Diarra are back in. Match Preview to follow.
Hala Madrid!!
We still can’t beat them can we?
Note: This post has a lot of random ramblings about the defeat in Turin. I’m just venting my anger.
I know. You know. Hell everyone knows what I am talking about. Its Juventus. To Hell with the Old Lady. We got beaten by the team which is called the Old Lady and has an history of wearing Pink strips because their original strips was lost in a mix up. Pink! Gross!! This is a disgrace to football! Above all that what pisses me off even more is the fact that they had a bigger injury crisis than we had but then they had Del Piero. Is he good or what?! His shot left St.Iker Himself stranded. And what the hell was Pepe doing? Why did he have to pass to Nedved of all the 10000 years old Czech players?!? Damn it! And it was like a dream come true for Amauri. First champions league against the most successful club in the history of European football. Wesley Sneijder was brilliant, as usual. So was Rafael. How did Cannavaro leave Del Piero free but? Damn you Italians! And now we lie second in the table. Is that good or bad? Hell I don’t know. We can beat them at home. We can beat Zenit at home as well. BATE away is tricky but hell we are Real Madrid! So as Raul Himself predicted I think we would easily qualify for the knock-out phase. But what the hell is it with this Italian menace? Why are we losing to Italian teams?!? Bernardo do something!! I can’t stand this. Just cannot! HELL!!! AAAARRRRGGGHHHH!!!
Next up is Athletic at home on Sunday. Guti and Diarra are training. They’ll hopefully be back. Robben is fit again. Sneijder is back! Van der Vaart is doing good as well. Van Nistelrooy is suspended but an appeal against his red card has been launched. So we might just see him play. Raul at home is in devastating form. We’ll probably see a goal or two from him as well. In all a good win on store.
Sky Sports reports that a stellar line-up of Galacticos will return to Real Madrid if presidency candidate Juan Villalonga gets his way. I want to know more about this. Hopefully Gonzalo can help. Villalonga told radio station COPE…
Players such as Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo or Kaka should be at Real Madrid. I will copy with model that Florentino used.
I agree. But Florentino’s era fucked up pretty bad towards the end. At least Calderon has brought home trophies if not the big names. And Messi?? Hmmm.. We’ll have to think deep I guess. And this brings us to our second poll.
Start voting and lets see how it goes. My opinion? Well I will go with the third option. 😀
Before I conclude on Friday, the Spanish national team -current European champions-, Rubén de la Red, former youth system coach Juan Santiesteban and Real Madrid Under-17 player Álvaro López will receive trophies from the Madrid FA, which rewards those who “work towards football in Madrid” every year.
Rubén de la Red will receive the Puma Awards Golden Boots, awarded to a differtent player, coach and referee each year. The midfielder, along with Casillas and Sergio Ramos, will receive a special trophy for winning an official competition -the Euro 2008- with the national team. Former national coach Luis Aragonés will also receive one.
The Spanish national team and the Spanish FA will also participate in the Madrid FA’s tribute to sport merits in the Madrid football scene, during which Pozuelo de Alarcón Club will receive an award. Members of the Under-17 national team, who recently won the Under-17 Euro 2008 in Turkey, will also be lauded -their captain, Álvaro López, is a Real Madrid academy player-.
Real Madrid will be praised for winning the 2007/08 league championship. Getafe will also be acknowledged for their excellent performances in the UEFA Cup and for playing in the 2008 King’s Cup final. Rayo Vallecano will be mentioned for recently being promoted to the Second Division, the same as Navalcarnero, who reached the Second Division B this year. Tres Cantos Pegaso, Santa Ana, Colonia Ofigevi and Vallecas will also be noted for making their debuts in the Third Division.
Thats about it for now. I’ll bring more for you soon.
Hala Madrid!!
If Cannavaro goes to Naples, we might go Danish and more stuff that I missed in these past few weeks
Hala Madrid!!
Hala Madrid!!
Hala Madrid!!
Ah, it feels so good to chant that, doesn’t it? You bet it does. Well, thats it people. My hibernal sleep is over and I am back to the blogosphere. For the past month or so I have not been blogging that regularly. I have though been making the regular posts on interviews, match reports and stuff like that but I have not not been making any kind of a post fully written by myself. I must tell you I really have been that busy. I have had loads of work to do like quizzes to conduct, exams to write and records to complete. I have completely been off track when it comes to Real. I did watch the Espanyol game. I did see the Raul brace and I did enjoy it and thankfully I slept through the second half and I was happy that I missed all the dreadful misses that we made and all the injury trouble that we had. Arjen Robben stayed on for like almost 20 minutes since he came on and he was taken out again to be replaced by Drenthe who was actually not even half as good as Robben was. DAMN! Not that I don’t like Drenthe but its just that I feel he needs more time to be groomed and nursed so that he becomes the next Gheorge Hagi. Am I expecting too much? Well I don’t think so. Diarra got busted while playing for Mali and Guti is still out with an injury. Both are set to miss the Derby. If you are reading this then you definitely would be knowing the team list for the match. Hell the match might even be over with Real comfortably cruising to victory with a 3-0 margin. Or maybe, just maybe, Atletico fans would run crazy like they did a week back and the match would have been postponed. Hell they scared away the English pussies from playing in Spain! What I actually think is that they are just scared to play Spain and ruin their form. They would prefer playing teams like Kazakhsthan and Solomon Islands. They might even play The Netherlands Antilles but not Spain. Well I think it is just good for us. We get to see more of Real and club football action. Anyhoo, there will be no more international breaks hopefully until the new year and I shall in peace watch the team I love the most. Coming back to the topic, we play Atletico away tonight. Sneijder will play with van der Vaart and De la Red in the center. I doubt if Gago will be rushed in. I can clearly see Javi Garcia starting. We do need that holding midfielder. Diarra our best player this season till this moment did that so wonderfully. I hope someone takes charge in his absence. I can go on about tonight’s game but then again this isn’t a preview and hence I shall move on.
About two weeks ago we were linked with Liverpool’s Danish defender Daniel Agger. One of our vice presidents was heard saying that we are likely to make a bid for him this January. But Rafa was quite quick to react rejecting any rumors regarding Agger’s departure from The Kop. Agger is this guy loves attacking as you all must be knowing and is this Pepe kind of a player. But that isn’t what we need. We have Pepe himself of course to do that. What we are looking for is a Cannavaro as he has made no secret of his desire to end his career in his homeland. With speculation linking him with a move to his home town club resurfacing, Cannavaro admits anything is possible.
I will talk with Real, but we will see. I’ve always said that I would like to come back home. I left Napoli due to the club’s financial troubles, but they are in better shape now and I know both president (Aurelio) De Laurentiis and sporting director (Pierpaolo) Marino hold me in high regard.
But then again he told AS that he would want to stay on at Real. So we really don’t know what is the Italian’s mind. Frankly speaking I am not fond of Italians and obviously I don’t understand their mentality except of course The Gattuso. We all love The Gattuso.
Crisitano Ronaldo is still wanted here.
Emilio Butragueno has been talking of late. He believes Real Madrid cannot hope to compete with Barcelona for entertainment value but reckons his former club have a more competitive spirit. I think he believes in shit. I don’t know why but it is a fact that as a player I simply adore him. He is obviously a club legend but if he is going to talk like Pele making no sense I simply have to ignore him I guess. I don’t know how we cannot entertain people like that too like Barcelona does. I simply don’t understand. I do not want to touch on it again.
Lastly, we are being linked with this Brazilian kid Douglas along with the cunts in Red. We’ll know what kind of a man he is very soon.
Thats about it. Remember this is just a new beginning.
Hala Madrid!!
Mahammadou Diarra to AS
Mahamadou Diarra has played more than most of his teammates this season, and the Mali international has not disappointed. In an interview with Spanish newspaper AS, the midfielder stressed that he feels better than ever.
No one expected a slip-up against Espanyol after six straight victories.
It’s a pity that we couldn’t defeat Espanyol. We let two points escape from the Bernabéu and we cannot let it happen again. Espanyol is a very good team and they played very well. They made it tough by coming out very strong. We should have capitalized more on the chances we had, but we played well and deserved the win.
You’re in great form and you’ve been the best player so far this season.
Honestly, I’m just the same player I was with Lyon. I wanted to prove to people that I could play here just like I used to there, and I finally feel that I have reached that level, although I still want to get even better. Many have people have doubted me since I got here, but I knew I would reach this point. I feel great and everything is going well for me. I am happy to be able to contribute to my team.
What have you done to look so good with the ball at your feet? You look like Fernando Redondo out there.
I don’t know what is going on. I certainly have improved with the ball, but I am not doing anything different than before. I am very confident right now and very secure with the ball, and the team is taking notice.
What did you give to your teammates for them to ask Calderón not to sell you last summer?
There is a fantastic atmosphere among the team and we all get along great. I have a lot of friends here.
It’s time to make another long trip to you beloved Africa.
I am currently in camp with my national team and I have to be careful because I tend to get kicked a lot in matches here (laughs). I’m just joking. Donning the colors of your national team is always an honor for any player.
When you return, a mad Atletico coming off a 6-1 thrashing at the hands of Barcelona awaits.
Very true. We play Atletico as soon as we return and I am sure it will be an incredible game. I have played three matches against them, one ending in victory and the other two in draws. They will come out firing after the debacle against Barcelona, but we’ll enter the Calderón in search of a win. We both have a lot at stake. It will be a great match.
Winning the league this season would make it eight straight for you. Not many have accomplished such a feat.
I have seven right now and would love to make it eight with Madrid. I know it will be tough, but the team looks good and I think we can win another. I have a great feeling.
Just another Madridista
Hala Madrid 
Osasooner rather than later – Osasuna pre-preview
Time to leave them sitting ducks
C.A. Osasuna a.k.a Los Rojillos are placed 12th in La Liga with 39 points, seven clear of the relegation zone and can confirm their status as a top-flight club with a win in tomorrow’s 19:00 CET kick-off against 2nd placed Real Madrid C.F at Estadio Santiago Bernabéu.
Osasuna with their über-cool 4-2-3-1 formation arrive in Madrid having scored the second fewest goals in La Liga – a meager 30 from their 34 games. Real Madrid on the other hand have scored more than any other team in the league – a humongous 89 from the same number of games.
More stats, Real Madrid have won 37 and drawn 14 of the 63 matches played against Gorritxoak. And at home the Whites have won 24 out the 31 ti,mes they’ve played them. And in the current season Osasuna have only notched points in six of their 17 matches away from home.
But all that will not matter when eleven of our men take on ten of theirs and Walter Pandiani. All that will matter is the performance on the pitch. And that means we need to be at our best in order to have any kind of chance of winning the league. Barça play Villareal at El Madrigal in the late kick-off on Saturday and going by what happened midweek against Inter, when they were tactically played out by Mourinho’s men, they wouldn’t be in the best of mindsets thus giving us a very good chance of going ahead of them in the table. Either way, irrespective of whether they win or lose, we must get to the 98 point mark. Its unequivocally mandatory. Kaká could not have agreed more with me. Speaking to bwin.com he said:
And with reference to the Barcelona-Villareal game:
Team news now and Osasuna first. With Javad Nekounam’s availability still in question, Puñal may get the nod as the defensive midfielder along with Ruper or Vadocz while Monreal will suit up for Jose Antonio Camacho’s team after serving a one-match suspension. The exact squad list will be posted in the proper preview to the game.
Their strategy is quite simple and well known to all. They attack using their quick wing-backs and wingers. Keeping tabs on them will stop the supply to the brawny Pandiani thus preventing them from scoring. Ricardo is in fine form and we must remember that we haven’t scored against them this season. They are the only other team apart from Bilbao and Barcelona in Spain to have achieved that.
Probable Starting XI: CA Osasuna
As far as we are concerned we will definitely be without the services of Raúl, Pepe, Van der Vaart and Drenthe. The latter though participated in full training today but will definitely not make the cut. The other three are missing for obvious reasons. We also have a few niggled players in Diarra, Arbeloa (niggled left patellar tendon), Lass (lower back pain) and Guti (strained left hamstring) who completed specific recovery protocols in the gym. Saturday’s session, scheduled for 10:30 CET, behind closed doors will be when the final squad is decided.
I think Kaká, Benzema and Ronaldo will start. I am not fielding Guti, Arbeloa and Lass and am keeping Granero along with them on the bench again. But it isn’t me but Manuel Pellegrini who will make the final decision. So let us just wait and see.
Probable Starting XI: Real Madrid C.F
The game should be a walk in the park for us. More of a formality than a task. We are in the right spirit with a good win last weekend. We seem to have players in form. And more importantly this is a home game. I am sure we are up for it. If we play like we do every week we will come out victors. We just need to keep it simple.
In other news, as most of you must already be knowing, Russell Crowe visited the Valdebebas yesterday and managed to take quite a few snaps with our stars during his promotion of Robin Hood in Madrid. Also, Veterans of Real Madrid and AC Milan will be clashing once again this season, this time for a good cause. Click here to learn more about it.
Transfer news and I sincerely request all you young Real Madrid fans to not believe the rumors about Carlos Tevez or Wayne Rooney coming to Real Madrid. They are as fake as David Villa accepting a move to Barcelona. On the other hand, the rumor linking Mahamadou Diarra to Manchester United might just be true. Momo is getting no time to play here and might as well feel like plying his trade in some other country now that he is nearing the end of his career. With Metzelder already leaving, Raúl and Guti contemplating whether to honor their contracts or not and Diarra planning to move – Dudek might be the only real veteran in our squad. Casillas, Ramos, Xabi and Kaká all have experience but then again age wise at least these are the players with the real major experience. The latest news regarding Guti is the rumor about him playing in Dubai.
And as far as José Mourinho managing Real Madrid is concerned, you’ve got to admit that you are flattered by the prospective. He is a special man and with a special talent as a manager. But then again, it all comes down to what we want. Do we want to win irrespective of the way we play? Or do we want to win the Real Madrid way? If you don’t understand my point then take this for example. Chelsea was a good club playing some real good football that almost all football fans loved watching before Mourinho took over. The only thing that they did not do was win titles. And then came Mourinho. Fans all over the world started hating Chelsea complaining about their style of play and their tactics. But that wasn’t the only thing that changed. They started winning titles. Even though they missed out on the Champions League they did make it to the last four more than once. It all comes down to what we want. Going by the dry period and the investments from Florentino we must agree that we are in desperate need for silverware. But thinking again, we are Real Madrid and we have a brand. Is Pellegrini maintaining our brand name?
If yes, we have to give him time – at least one more season. He now knows where his team is lacking and what needs to be done to improve them. Who knows, we might just have our best season next year. Pellegrini’s team has only shown signs of improvement. Drastic improvements so to speak. The only thing that needs to be corrected from this season is playing in do-or-die situations. We don’t seem to have enough number of big match players. Not big name players but big match players. The ones who can step up to the next level when the situation calls for it. We do that and we might just be the next set of invincibles. Far fetched or just a possibility?
If no, then we fire him and silverware is still not guaranteed next season. Every manager needs his settling-in period – even the special one. Also, he will definitely tinker with the team composition as much as he wants to so that it fits his game plan. And that means more money spent. Then, his team needs time to adapt thus taking more time. It is only then that we will win titles under him.
Also, there is the major factor about the players wanting to play under him. He is a man who is known to have the magical power of controlling big egos. Pellegrini seems to be doing a good job as far as that is concerned and at the same time is keeping his players happy. Will Mourinho be able to do the same? Ask Balotelli.
Ultimately it all comes down to what we want. What do you want?
I want it sooner rather than later.
Para Siempre Blanco!
Hala Madrid!!
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April 30, 2010 | Categories: Comments, News, Pre-preview, Transfer Rumours | Tags: Christoph Metzelder, José María Gutiérrez 'Guti', José Mourinho, Kaká, Mahamadou Diarra, Manchester United FC, Manuel Pellegrini | Leave a comment