Still, some 5 to 6 players are being linked to Real Madrid. Among them as Pastore (the young midfielder) and after Drogba, Adebayor, Ashley Cole it is now Gael Clichy of Arsenal who is being linked with Real Madrid.

Oh yeah, and by the way, the Maicon deal is still possible. Yeah right? What do these media people think we are?

I know we buy their news no matter how full of crap it is filled with but this is getting really boring. And I have not even begun to mention the names that are being linked AWAY from Real Madrid.

Players such as Sergio Ramos, Benzema and Van Der Vaart are being linked away from Real Madrid to Chelsea, Milan and Manchester United respectively. These are our key players and two are really young but reports say that Benzema has not impressed Jose Mourinho.

I think the only problem with Benzema that Mourinho could have is his attitude and work ethic. Technically I think, there is striker in the world better than Benzema but his mind is not where it needs to be if Benzema wants to keep playing for top clubs.

Robinho, Adriano and more or less Cassano had the same problem. All these players had great techniques and were lauded as the next big thing in football world but none lived up to the expectations. I still remember, people used to argue over who was better, Messi or Robinho.

And now look what has happened. Messi has scored above 40 goals for two consecutive seasons and Robinho has yet to come out of his shock move from Real Madrid to Manchester City. Robinho still (like Ibrahamovic) is being said to have ‘great potential’ and Messi has already written his name alongside Maradonna and Pele in football history.

I don’t know but players need to realize that it is not only their feet that has to do the work in order for them to be good football players. You need a humble attitude and an unquenchable thirst for success in order to reach the heights that all the past legends have climbed upto.

Anyway, what do you think? Does Mourinho really need another player? Perhaps Clichy? Would selling Sergio Ramos be a mistake? Oh yeah and one more thing, I just got my head shaved.

I can listen to you better now without all the hair around my ears. Talk to me. I am waiting and like always, all ears.

Drogba could be joining Mourinho at Real Madrid (Source: Ben from flickr)

Brand new day and a brand new name to be linked with Real Madrid. Didier Drogba is believed to be Jose Mourinho’s next target. Apparently, Mourinho wants a reunion with as many players as possible from his past teams and Chelsea was one of them.

Mourinho probably wants another striker (duh!!) but someone with good experience in the Champions League. Probably a strong striker with a good aim on his shots. Drogba fits the bill I think.

But have a look at what Real Madrid are offering Chelsea. 10 million folks. 10 million for a proven world class striker who scored a hat trick in his first game of the 2010-2011 season for Chelsea and scored over 30 goals last season alone.

At first I thought, it was something like 10 million plus Higuain. Lolz. I know Drogba is old but 10 million is something Chelsea and Drogba himself would consider an insult.

Real Madrid are also said to be after Ozil. Werder Bremen star. Apparently Real Madrid offered 4 or 5 million euros for the 21 year old’s services which was again considered by Werder Bremen as an insult.

Real Madrid then upped the offer and have now offered 14 million euros which I think is a bit too much for a young lad with 11 or 10 months left on his contract.

Plus, we have so many midfielder already. Surely we do not need anymore of the mid-fielders. We need a right back or preferably a left back and if the budget allows, a striker. Nothing more, the squad is almost complete.

Though it may not remain complete for long as Real Madrid hear another injury from yet another player. Now it was Garay who has injured himself, I think during training or during the Bayern Munich match.

He is expected to be out for at least 2 months if not 4 months. I hope we do not run out of central defenders like Arsenal in the BPL.

Lets see what happens in the coming days. Will Real Madrid buy someone they actually need or will there be yet another panic buy like Carvalho. What do you think?

As always, I am ALL EARS and want to hear from you. I am here, sitting here. Talk to me.

HALA MADRID!!!!

Football hit by Carvalho - Source: Jaymeydad from flickr

Real Madrid have sign the Chelsea defender Ricardo Carvalho. He is a solid defender but is he really needed at Real Madrid or even if Real Madrid do need a central defender, is he the answer to real madrid’s problems?

There reasons why he is not the answer to Real Madrid’s lack of defensive qualities:

• He is old. Fact is fact, he is 32 years old. Has only signed a 2 year contract with the option of a signing on for another year. He was one of the world’s best at his peak but not now. Mourinho had him in his squad at Chelsea and also (before that) at Porto. Does this look like an emotional buy to you guys? I don’t know but he certainly is not what you can call, a great potential.
• His signing probably means that Real Madrid would not be buying Maicon or Thiago Silva. Which were both two world class defenders. Though they were more expensive than Carvalho but both are younger than him and are at their peaks. It is another fact that their clubs would not sell them at a cheaper price and the fact that I would have loved to see Maicon at Real Madrid, you know, he would have been considered another Galacticos like Roberto Carlos all those years back at Real Madrid
• Carvalho’s signing further indicates that Mourinho has no plan to stay at Real Madrid for longer than 3 years (at max). I think he just wants to make a great team for the next 2 or 3 years after which he would leave and Real Madrid would have to sign some more younger players in order to build for the future.

There you go. These were the reasons I think that Real Madrid should not have bought Carvalho. He is known to have concentration lapses during matches and I don’t see in him the desire to win anymore.

Plus the fact that signing Alex from Chelsea or Lucio from Inter Milan would have been cheaper and much better. I think both of those defenders are better than Carvalho at the moment.

Mourinho has been known to revive older player’s careers so I am looking forward to what he does with Ricardo Carvalho.

Certainly a shock signing but hats off to Real Madrid administration for keeping the signing a low profile one. No transfer saga this time otherwise who knows? Real Madrid might have ended up paying 15 or 17 million for a 32 year old defender.

Something stunning is about to happen (Source: Jan Solo from Flickr)

Ronaldo scored a fantastic free kick goal against Club America two days ago in a pre season match. Real Madrid finally won the game 3-2. Higuain also scored in the match. So that is good news, two of the 3 strikers are already getting into their gear.

Mourinho though was really impressed by the performances of Sergio Canales and Pedro Leon. Good start to the pre season for Real Madrid but Mourinho says he wants to try different strategies and tactics in the pre season so he would rather loose a game now rather than in the season.

Apparently Mourinho has got 3 systems he wants to play for the next season and one of them has two wide wingers in Angel Di Maria and Pedro Leon. Would be interesting how would Mourinho line up both of these young fast wingers and the rest of the squad as we also have ronaldo, higuain, benzema, van der vaart (or kaka) and Xabi Alonso as our attacking options.

Maicon deal is still hanging on. Inter Milan have rejected the 26 million euro offer that Real Madrid made some days ago. Rafael Benetiz says he does not want Maicon to leave (probably because he wants Real Madrid know that the player is not going for such a low price).

Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho has also said that anything less than a League title or a Champions League title next season would be a failure for him and for Real Madrid. He wants to make his name in Real Madrid’s history.

Well, I do not know about Mourinho but I think long time Real Madrid fans would know that winning JUST the league is not enough at Real Madrid so if Mourinho think that winning the league would buy him some more time as a Real Madrid then I think he better send his agent looking for other clubs (not saying, he is short of chasers).

The fate of Capello (two times sacked after winning the league title) and the good performances of Pelligrini and Schuster should serve a good example for Mourinho of what is expected from him (or any other coach) at Real Madrid.

What do you guys think? Will Mourinho get sacked if he fails to do the double this season?

HALA MADRID!!!

Source: Jan Solo from flickr

Since the day Karim Benzema arrived at Real Madrid, people have been expecting big things from the 22 year old and so far, he has disappointed everyone at Real Madrid. Though it has to be said that his chances of proving himself to the Bernabeu faithful were hampered by the scintillating form of Gonzalo Higuain.

When Benzema arrived, everyone thought that it would be Higuain playing as a backup to Benzema and as the season unfold, Real Madrid found out that it was in fact the other way around.

Benzema could not settle into the Spanish capital and spent most of the season either injured or on the bench. This also resulted in Benzema loosing his spot in the french national team.

Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago. Benzema said he has settled into Spain and was comfortable with the language but it was widely speculated that Real Madrid wanted to sell him to Manchester United.

Mourinho then afterwards stated that he think Benzema along with Ronaldo and Higuain, is Real Madrid’s attacking future. With Raul and Guti out of the picture now, Mourinho said it was time these three took up the responsibility of carrying Real Madrid’s goal scoring tradition to new heights.

I was glad to hear that Mourinho was counting on Benzema but come friday, the reports had it that now Mourinho wants to use Benzema as a bait to sign Ashley Cole (left back) from Chelsea.

Chelsea wanted to sign Fernando Torres but Torres pledged his future to Liverpool just last week. Mourinho feels that Chelsea could be tempted with an offer that would include Benzema as a part of the deal. Benzema is young and is full of potential while cole is now 29 I think but while he may be 7 years Benzema’s senior, he is widely accepted as the best left back in the world or at least in Europe since Roberto Carlos has moved to Corinthians.

I find it strange. One week we hear Mourinho wanting Benzema to try showcase his talents under his guidance and the very next day the news say that he wants to exchange him for some other player. Though it has to be added that this news did come from a british newspaper and Mourinho wanting to keep Benzema came from another source.

Next 2 weeks are going to be crucial for Real Madrid as the Maicon deal is another matter that remains to be solved. That deal has also taken a nice twist, just enough to make it last a little longer in the media, as Maicon’s agent has said that he (and his client) would not have any problems with Real Madrid on agreeing personal terms.

It is the two clubs that are causing the problems. Contrary to previous reports, Real Madrid and Inter Milan still are locked on the transfer fee for the player. Inter Milan want somewhere near 30 million while Real Madrid are ready to go no higher than 24 million euros.

And while we are on the topic of who is coming in and who is going out at Real Madrid. Kaka, who was widely expected to leave Real Madrid as the reports said that Mourinho thought Kaka was old now and wass not fit enough, has surely taken a break from football without leaving Real Madrid.

It has been revealed that Kaka suffered a knee injury during the World Cup but kept on playing with pain but it got too much and he got injured in Real Madrid’s preseason. Mind you, Real Madrid have only played on pre season game so far. It is possible that Kaka might have got himself injured while training.

Kaka underwent a surgery  a day ago and the surgery was successful but doctors have revealed that had Kaka not been operated on time, this injury could have ended his career. Mourinho was given the credit for saving Kaka, as he realized his very quickly that Kaka would need a surgery and thus sent him packing in a jiffy.

Right now Mourinho does not seem disturbed by Kaka’s injury as he thinks Real Madrid have plenty of players in that position. Van Der Vaart would probably see this as a blessing in disguise.

HALA MADRID!!!!

Source: enot_female From flickr

Jose Mourinho is now in his full stride as now for the first time (since becoming the new Real Madrid coach) he has the full squad for his training sessions. Hopefully, this will give him a lot more insights about a lot of players he has not been able to train till now.

I think we will have to accept the fact that Real Madrid are going to sell one of Lassana Diarra, Mohammadou Diarra and Fernando Gago. Given Diarra’s age, I think being the oldest of the 3, he will have to leave though I would have loved for him to stay at Real Madrid.

We need experienced players for the Champions League. Physical players who can rattle the midfield with their strength and tackling ability. Diarra is world class when it comes to breaking counter attacks or slowing them down. He is such a natural reader of the game. Can anticipate moves with great precision.

However, there is no way Mourinho can all of the defensive midfield guys in one squad so let us just wait and see, what Mourinho does in the upcoming weeks. Meanwhile, he has said that he wants one more defender and a striker as a back up to Higuain and Benzema.

The good news that I can read in those lines is that, is Mourinho actually counting on Benzema? that is great because I don’t Real Madrid to sell Benzema to Manchester United.  That would be horrible to say the least. Benzema is an investment that Real Madrid made last season and there is no doubt that he will give Real Madrid a lot of things to cheer for in the near future.

Anyway, as I was saying. Mourinho wants another striker as he feels he does not want to get short on strikers if injuries do take their toll on Real Madrid next season. Another good thing from this statement is that he wants Cristiano Ronaldo do play at the wings, not as a striker upfront.

He feels Ronaldo can offer so much more on the wings or by playing a little bit closer to the defense than he was forced to play last season. With Ronaldo as the winger, this surely means that Angel Di Maria and Pedro Leon would largely be playing as back up wingers for the next season. May be even for the 2011-2012 season as well.

Mourinho also wants a defender. Which means that he will only sign one. This means, Real Madrid is either going to sign Maicon (highly probable) or Ashley Cole. I feel we need Ashley Cole a bit more as our left backs are not, what you call quality.

We have “ok” players in that position. The likes of Arbeloa and Marcelo can play there, but we need quality. Though it has to be said that our center of defense will be weaker if we only sign Ashley Cole as that would mean that Ramos would still play on the right, not in the center.

Mourinho has also been impressed the work ethic of Ronaldo. He feels that Manchester United have done a lot of work on him which has enabled Ronaldo to become the player he is today. Mourinho feels that the work that Ronaldo puts in, his training makes it easier for Mourinho to motivate other players to give that extra 10 percent.

I think Ronaldo has to work that hard. Because his game is 80-90 percent speed. He needs to maintain his weight and his fitness to keep up that pace. He is not like Messi or the old Ronaldo, they could rely on their touch on the ball and other tricks to go past defenders or to be useful to the team.

Ronaldo is a lot speed dependent in that respect. I’ll just end the post with the question “Should kaka be sold this summer?”. Something I am curious to write something about in the coming days.

HALA MADRID!!!!

Source: Corey cam from flickr

Barcelona players and staff alike have been having their say about Real Madrid signings this season. Barcelona won La Liga last season and the season before that won the famous sextuple, a feat which no side has ever achieved. Barcelona did fail to retain their Champions League crown and only edged Real Madrid by the tightest of margins to win La Liga.

Infact, they won on the last day. Had Real Madrid been more lucky (in terms of injuries and taking their chances) who knows, Barcelona might have ended up with nothing to show for all their glamorous BARCA football.

Pep Guardiola has said that he thinks that former Real Madrid player Raul is the best spanish player of all time. I don’t know if I want to agree with that. To some he might be. Statistically, he is not. Villa is better than Raul statistically. He is one goal behind Raul but has played 20 or 30 games less than Raul.

Talent wise I don’t think Raul is the best ever but if we talk about trophies then Raul is one of the most coveted figures not just in Spain but throughout the footballing world. He has literally won everything with Real Madrid. I think he won 17 or 18 trophies with Real Madrid in his 16 or 17 seasons at Real Madrid.

Which alone speaks volumes. If we talk about work ethic, leadership skills, composure and will to win, then Raul is certainly the greatest spanish player of all time. There are players who are better than him technically and more gifted than him physically but rarely  have I seen a player with Raul’s resolve.

That is why I think Mourinho considered the option of having Raul as a dressing room leader at Real Madrid, not as a starting member of the squad. Raul pbviously did not like the idea and hence left for Schalke, where he actually has scored a wonderful goals by the way. Here is the goal he scored, his second of the game actually:

Barcelona star Zlatan Ibrahimovic has said that he does not believe in Real Madrid but does believe in Mourinho. What exactly does he mean by that? He does believe in Real Madrid?

Does he not believe that Real Madrid can win La Liga by beating Barcelona at home and away? or does he BELIEVE that Mourinho will win a lot of titles with Real Madrid (obviously at the cost of Barcelona) or may be he just meant that if Real Madrid do end up winning anything then that would be because of Mourinho not because of Real Madrid.

Then what is Real Madrid? Obviously when talking about performance on the pitch, Real Madrid is a team of 11 players and some managing staff. How dumb is Ibrahimovic.

Anyway, hope he gets to eat his words later on in the season. HALA MADRID!!!

Source: SdotCruz from flickr

Reports are going crazy these days (when do they ever make sense anyway?). Two days ago, almost all the reports said that Mourinho has given up Maicon and is now looking at alternatives.

Now it has emerged that Maicon has finally decided to lower his wage demands so that he can move to Real Madrid. Along with that, Inter Milan have also lowered their asking price for Maicon (his agent also did not get the deal that he wanted, which is why I think the transfer was being delayed, it is still not done yet though, but I think, it was because of his agent, all the time).

Maicon won the Champions League with Inter last season, along with the Serie A and Italian cup double. Mourinho’s treble winning side Inter Milan, can thank the efforts of Sniejder (former Real Madrid) and Maicon for this achievement and now Maicon (according to MOST of the reports) should be playing for Real Madrid next season.

Just two days back, Maicon’s agent said that Real Madrid’s behavior was not acceptable. In what respect?

Just because Real Madrid were not willing to pay up the hefty price that his agent was asking for himself from the transfer does not mean that Real Madrid were being rude. Maicon’s agent then accused Real Madrid of not making sacrifices. Another crap.

I don’t know why modern day football players are so stupid or atleast act like so. I mean. Can’t they say that their agents are always trying to get them to change their clubs so that they can make off some good money from the transfer deals.

It is probably why agents are the happiest people of them all when a team wins a treble. All of the player’s market share gets boosted which means that the agents can have lots of options for the player for a possible transfer.

Sole reason why Robinho left Real Madrid. I think, the media reporting that Robinho did not like the fact that he was being used for the transfer of Ronaldo was just the cover story. I am not saying he did not say that but what I am saying is that, I think Robinho was forced to think like that.

Who forced him? Of course his agent.

Anyway, hope this transfer saga comes to an end. Mourinho revolution as truly begin at Real Madrid from the looks of it. The players are being put through intense training sessions. One in the morning and one in the afternoon. Real Madrid’s preseason is surely something I am looking forward to.

HALA MADRID!!!!!

Source: Jan Solo from Flickr

Ok. Let me be very honest. I respect Mourinho, a lot. But if reports are to be believed then Jose Mourinho is about to commit a serious mistake. He wants to sell off kaka. Now, I know that kaka had a bad season last season because of injuries and what not, but that does not suffice for him to be sold.

Kaka is a world class player. He has a good attitude towards the game. Mourinho will enjoy training such a player who does cause unrest in the dressing room. Any player as good as kaka and with his humbleness would be a blessing for any dressing room, let alone Real Madrid.

Apparently, Mourinho wants to sign even younger players. Ozil is next on the list. He is another German who impressed a lot of people at the World Cup 2010. Before the world cup, I don’t know many people who would have signed him for Real Madrid though I did take a notice of him, in FIFA 10. haha.

Hye but that game is not as kiddish as most people think it is. It takes a lot of practice and some hard work to figure out a good squad in FIFA 10′s manager mode. I know for many people that is a piece of cake too but not for me. Playing with West Ham United alone is bad enough for me in the manager mode.

Back to real football now. Apart from Kaka there has been little hint as to who else Mourinho wants to get rid off. I think one of Lass, Diarra and Gago is going to have to leave but seriously, I would hate Mourinho if he sells Kaka. I love Kaka. I want him to retire at Real Madrid simply because of the reason that he is a great sportsman. He works hard and never considers himself a big name player.

Ronaldo, who could have easily been the greatest player of all time (he is still up there with the best) had it not been for his attitude towards the game. His disrespect for the game. He let loose. He gained weight and did not make any effort to improve once he got his 3rd FIFA player of the year award. He could have done so much more had he been gifted with Kaka’s attitude and humility.

But you cannot have all the qualities. Either you have the skill of Ronaldo or you have Kaka’s attitude (not that he does not have any skill) or you can have both in Messi. HAHA.

Anyway, I was really relieved to see that Benzema still feels a part of Real Madrid and is willing to fight for his place in this Real Madrid squad for the next season. Reports did say that he is not wanted by Mourinho ( I hope that is wrong too as Benzema is a fantastic talent) and Manchester United are prepared to pay big for him.

Considering Real Madrid also need a left back and Manchester United’s Evra wants to leave Old Trafford, I still think, that we have seen the last of Benzema at Real Madrid. I think that. I hope it does not materialize.

Same is the case with Kaka. Chelsea want him and Real Madrid want Chelsea’s Ashley Cole and Ricardo Carvalho. A deal can be sensed there too. All depends on Real Madrid I guess and Mourinho. There is no way Chelsea or Manchester United would decline the offer of Kaka for anything. There could be some player exchange and cash deal. Anything can happen.

One thing is for sure, we have not seen the best of Kaka at Real Madrid. I am almost 100 percent sure that we will see the best of Kaka (given he does not get injured) next season and I won’t through in their the good old SAFE words, like, if Kaka works hard or makes an effort or concentrates hard enough. I think if Kaka plays, there is no way he will not perform (again, given he is fit).

Two new signings, Angel Di Maria and Khedira have also come out and have said that they want to succeed at Real Madrid and will try their best. Not uncommon for new comers though. Only time will tell (Boy, I love that phrase or whatever).

Khedira also thinks that Real Madrid should aim for Champions League next season (who does not think that!!!) and he also thinks he would be a perfect match for Xabi Alonso in the center of the midfield. For some reason he thinks he can strike a great partnership with Alonso. Hope he does well though I would have signed him if I was Mourinho. Don’t know what Mourinho was thinking.

Angel Di Maria has also stated his side of the story. He feels, he is ready for the big stage that is Real Madrid and he really wants to win some titles next season (oo, the optimistic talk of pre-season, I just love this). He also knows what he can give to the team and that is speed.

Maria who is just 22, can give lots of speed on the wings. Something which Mourinho has always relied on as he loves to use fast wingers (may be that is why Drenthe has not been sold, yet).

Back to Benzema. I just thought I would convey his message through this blog and thats, he hopes he can score a lot of goals next season for Real Madrid. Sure, who would not love that for him. Only one problem and that is Higuain.

He was the sole reason why Benzema could not get enough playing time last season. Nobody expected Higuain to perform at such a high level. He impressed everybody at the World Cup with his super performances which means, he still has not got off his hot streak. Yet.

That is where Mourinho’s man management skills will definitely be tested. He has two world class strikers. Young strikers with huge ambitions. Competing for one place. He also has 2 or 3 world class defensive midfielder, competing for a single spot on the first team. I hope Mourinho does not mess this up though I myself do not know which one would I play if I was in Mourinho’s shoes.

]]> http://www.madridgalacticos.com/2010/08/02/real-madrids-kaka-trouble-benzema-angel-di-maria-khedira-season/feed/ 0 http://www.madridgalacticos.com/2010/07/31/player-profile-sami-khedira/ http://www.madridgalacticos.com/2010/07/31/player-profile-sami-khedira/#comments Sat, 31 Jul 2010 15:34:11 +0000 Borris Becker http://www.madridgalacticos.com/?p=1680

Source: thomas Duchnicki on Flickr

Real Madrid’s latest signing. The 23 year old German. His previous club was Stuttgart but now he is at Real Madrid, probably the biggest club in the world. While I know alot of people are skeptical about his role at Real Madrid, whether it will be good for the club or not.

Whether Khedira would be able to develop himself as a player at Real Madrid (Real Madrid is not considered to be the best place for young players as they rarely get a chance to play as a first team choice).

Anyway, only time will tell whether Khedira will be able to perform at the level many people expect him to, or atleast at the level Mourinho expects him too.

Because, before the World Cup 2010, very few people thought that a player of Khedira’s talents or exposure would get a consideration from a club such as Real Madrid. Normally, Real Madrid go for players with huge reputations or at least huge potentials.

And as anyone would tell you. Khedira is anything but world class when it comes to technique or touch on the ball. His strengths are:

• Physical Strength
• Heading
• Stamina
• Positioning
• Speed
• Vision
• Sense of the game
• Strong on the ball
• Fearless

His tackling technique is nothing to talk about. He is not a claude Makalele by any means. He is though powerful figure who can easily intimidate other players with his giant stature.

Mourinho probably bought him because he is a perfect player for a team which plays on the counter attack. Khedira can help out the defense and the offence almost simultaneously. Because of his stamina, he can break up opponents counter attack fairly quickly because he can run and track back alot.

Mourinho’s teams are known to play counter attack football and Khedira may be the final piece of the puzzle which Mourinho sees would bring trophies to Real Madrid.

Khedira can expect to play with some the biggest stars in the world. He is not used to that. At stuggart , he was the main man in their team but here at Real Madrid, I imagine him warming the benches for quite a while. We have Diarra, Lass, Gago and Canoles for his position.

So it is going to be a tough season for him at Real Madrid, something which he used have considered when signing up for Real Madrid.

He is not a goal scorer and neither he should be. What I mean to convey is that, he is not a Steven Gerrard. He won’t be expected to score goals. He has scored 14 times for Stuggart in the 94 games he played for them. Other than that, I don’t think he is a attacking threat.

Hope he can prove that he is Real Madrid material, in the 5 or so, seasons he would be at Real Madrid (hopefully), though many analysts think that one of the players Real Madrid will loan out next season would Khedira, for some reasons which they see as rational. I say, only time will tell. ONLY time will tell.

HALA MADRID!!!!