Life Lessons Through Football: FC Barcelona Learn It The Hard Way Through Ibrahimovic & Chygrynskiy

Super-Flop

The season before the last one, FC Barcelona won everything there was to be won, they won the Copa del Ray, the La Liga and the Champions League, but due to Florentino Perez's arrival at Real Madrid and the signings he made, turned the spotlight on Real Madrid.

FC Barcelona didn't like that one bit, they didn't want the spotlight to be taken away from them, so they started critcizing the philosophies of Real Madrid, while making two mega money signings themselves in the form of Dmytro Chygrynskiy & Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Barcelona paid €25 million for Dmytro Chygrynskiy and €45 million plus the star man of last season—Samuel Eto'o (€30-35 million) for Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

But as fate would have it Chygrynskiy & Ibrahimovic both flopped and fell out of favor at the Catalan club.

FC Barcelona sold Dmytro Chygrynskiy to Shaktar Donetsk for €15 million suffering a loss of €10 million.

And after a long soap-opera in the summer, Zlatan Ibrahimovic finally bid farewell to Barcelona as he is now going to join AC Milan for an year on loan and then AC Milan HAVE to purchase Ibrahimovic for a mere €24 million, with FC Barcelona suffering a loss in the range of €50 million.

FC Barcelona were already covered in the central defender deaprtment, so it didn't cost them to find his replacement but they did spend €45 million on David Villa to replace Zlatan.

Now I agree that David Villa is an amazing signing and is better than Samuel Eto'o, but they have spent nearly €100 million on a player that wasn't even required to be replaced.

Now I agree Real Madrid did a lot of stupid things last season, and two namely being Wesley Sneijder and Arjen Robben, but Real Madrid weren't the "hexacampeons," Barcelona were, why change a system that wins you things?

Even if Barcelona wins 6 trophies in a season, they'll always be jealous of the club in Madrid that wears the royal whites, and this jealousy has cost them more than €100 million, and it doesn't help when your club has to take loans to pay off the salaries of the players.

Kids, now every experience in life teaches us a lesson, this experience teaches us that jealousy is a bad thing and you should not let what others do determine the things you do.

Okay now enough with the life lessons, lets have a laugh at the expense of our dear rivals! And did you hear, Gerard Pique handed in a request to join AC Milan too, I wonder why.........

Hala Madrid!

Real Madrid's Third Kit For The UEFA Champions League 2010-11 Is Purple!

Photo Courtesy: footballshirts.com

The third kit of Real Madrid 2010-11 season has been leaked on the Internet, footballshirts.com published it on their site a few days ago, I believe this is the real kit because they even posted the leaked pictures of the home and away kits of this season and they were right on both the occasions.

I am still hoping that this time they are wrong because I just don't like purple on the kit.

Home

The kits that Real Madrid wore last season (2009-10) were amazing, and it bums me out that the kits don't looks so good this season.

I like the pattern for the shirts this season though, rays coming out of the club crest but it's just that the colour combination isn't that good, only the home kit of 2010-11 looks good.

Away

The away kit would have looked good too if Adidas hadn't put that green strip on it, it looks completely out of place and ruins the whole look of the shirt!

Internazionale Away

Well at least Real Madrid's home and away kits aren't as bad as their rival Barcelona's ugly green away kit which looks more like a clown costume than a football kit, but then again, it suits them.

I wish that this leaked third kit is a fake and a serpent or dragon or something ends up on the shirt and it looks as awesome as the Internazionale away kit, don't you? Hala Madrid!

Possibble Formation Of Jose Mourinho's Real Madrid

I ran out of ideas for more posts after completeing the Mesut Ozil post, so I asked people for ideas on the blog's Facebook page, I decided to go with the idea of one "Real Madridista" for this post, because most of them seemed to agree with his idea.

Considering the players Jose Mourinho has at his disposal at Real Madrid, it is obvious that he will make them play offensively, despite the no-brained opinion of a clown by the name of Gerard Pique.

Real Madrid will probably use a formation which is hard to explain through the conventional formations. It is much more dynamic, it keeps on changing, like the resonating structures of Benzene.

Lets not get into Resonance, Benzene or Organic Chemistry because I suck at it and I only know the basics, okay, lets talk football.

For the sake of the post, I have chosen a team of: Iker, Sergio, Carvalho, Albiol, Marcelo, Xabi, Khedira, Leon, Ozil, Cristiano and Higuain. I have kept out the players who are injured (barring Raul Albiol). This team should not be taken as the final team, it is just for the purpose of explaining and reasoning how Real Madrid will play, it might be that Arbeloa plays at left-back and Di Maria starts over Pedro Leon.

• 4-3-3

The reason I believe that Jose Mourinho will apply this formation is because this is the formation that he has applied in most of the pre-season friendlies and also the fact that he purchased two wingers.

You can see Cristiano Ronaldo on the right wing, but Cristiano won't be just on the right, his mobility is what makes the formation so versatile.

Cristiano will move from the right wing to the left, then behind the striker and will also pop up as a striker. Pedro Leon (or Di Maria) will keep on switching between the wings giving Sergio Ramos or Marcelo a chance to bomb on forward.

Ozil will take up the role of the playmaker operating behind Higuain and will also be swapping places with Crsitiano Ronaldo and Pedro Leon.

Some expected Sami Khedira to play a sweeping role in midfield tucking in just ahead of the back four running and winning balls, but that is not the case. In the pre-season friendlies, Khedira played ahead of Xabi Alonso, winning the ball forward in attack. We have all seen Sami's stamina in the World Cup and know that he'll be back helping in defense as well as attacking, the role that Pellegrini had for Lass last season (the job which Lass sucks at).

Xabi Alonso will sit deep, winning balls along with Khedira in the midfield. Xabi is probably the most important player in the team, he is the one who is supposed to distribute the ball to the attacking players, as we saw in the Bayern Munich game, when Xabi Alonso (Xabi didn't have a bad day, he was just tired) is struggling the whole attack suffers.

• 4-4-2 Diamond or 4-1-2-1-2

The diamond formation was used by Jose Mourinho at Chelsea too. Jose Mourinho might even start with this diamond formation.

Even if he doesn't, the shape of the formation will change during the game and it will be a diamond at some point in the match with Cristiano Ronaldo joining Higuain as the striker.

Ozil will take the top of the diamond and Xabi Alonso and Khedira will take turns to be the lowest point in the diamond, Pedro Leon will join on any one side of the diamond.

The width will be provided by the full backs—Marcelo and Sergio Ramos.

• 3-5-2

I was intrigued by Jose Mourinho's claim of using a 3-5-2 formation with Real Madrid when needed. At first I couldn't figure it out, I was thinking along the lines of a Higuain-Benzema partnership, and Cristiano Ronaldo on the wings, but it didn't even convince me. I thought Jose might be kidding because Cristiano doesn't like to track back, and for this formation to work, he has to!

But after a few pre-season games, it became clear that it will be a Higuain-Cristiano pairing if the 3-5-2 is applied. The photo I have used shows the formation changing into a 3-5-2 during the game, where Marcelo will take the role of the left-sided winger. If this formation is to be applied when Arbeloa is playing left-back, substitutions will be made.

I do not believe that Real Madrid will start a game with a 3-5-2 but the 3-5-2 will defenitely be a "Plan-B" against stubborn, defensive teams who just want to sit behind.


Hala Madrid!



I would like to thank my friend Mary, for helping me out in this post, I had lost confidence on this post, and she is the reason this post is published, thanks Mary. :)

UEFA Homegrown Player Rule: Real Madrid Don't Have A Thing To Worry About

There is certainly some confusion on the Internet about the "homegrown" rule or the "Protection of young players" rule that UEFA have implied from this season onwards, I too got a few questions because of the last post about how the homegrown quota would be fulfilled if Granero is sold.

I knew a little about this rule, had the idea that Marcelo and Higuain would be considered as homegrown players, but there was more to it so I did a little research and found out that Real Madrid are more than covered in the homegrown department.


This is how UEFA defined homegrown players on their website:

UEFA defines locally-trained or 'homegrown' players as those who, regardless of their nationality, have been trained by their club or by another club in the same national association for at least three years between the age of 15 and 21. Up to half of the locally-trained players must be from the club itself, with the others being either from the club itself or from other clubs in the same association. The UEFA rule contains no nationality conditions whatsoever.

According to this definition, these players can be called homegrown players: Iker Casillas (GK), Sergio Ramos (DF), Esteban Granero (MF), Marcelo (MF) , Antonio Adan (GK), Xabi Alonso (MF), Sergio Canales (MF), Alvaro Arbeloa (DF), Raul Albiol (DF), Ezequiel Garay (DF)*, Gonzalo Higuain (FW), and Pedro Leon (MF).


*I am not too sure about Garay, but he did complete 3 seasons with Racing Santander before he turned 21, so he can be considered homegrown.

 The ones in bold font have completed 3 seasons between the age of 15-21 in the Liga BBVA with different teams, but will be classified as homegrown players because of the condition stated above. The rest of them have completed 3 seasons with Real Madrid between the age of 15-21.

UEFA have set a limit of 25 players to be used in the European competitions, and out of these 25, eight of the players have to be homegrown. Real Madrid currently have 12, out of which 7 are trained by Real Madrid, thus also fulfilling the criteria that 50% of the homegrown players should be trained by the club they represent.

A few of the players are going to be sold, and if Real Madrid fall short in the homegrown department  which is highly unlikely, they can name a few players of the academy in the list of 25, as there is no rule that obliges the club to play a certain number of homegrown players on the field.


So there you have it, Real Madrid are well covered in the homegrown department, I hope this clears the confusion created by the rule. Hala Madrid!

If you want to read more about the rule, visit UEFA's Official Web-Site.

Mesut Ozil's Signing Opens The Exit Door & Shortens Opportunities

Mesut Ozil—Nuevo jugador.

Real Madrid agreed a deal worth €15 million for one of the brightest attacking midfielders in the world. No doubt Ozil for €15 million is a smart bit of business, but looking at the team and the circumstances it's €15 million too much.

I have been torn in the middle ever snice I came to know about that the signing of Mesut Ozil became official, part of me wants to celebrate at the fact that Real Madrid have signed a great player who is just 21 and has a great future in front of him.

But the part of me that is winning and trumping every argument is the one that says Ozil wasn't a neccessary signing for this season. I believe this one is the rational part of me, which knows that there are already three playmakers in the team and there was no requirement of a fourth one despite Kaka being injured for 4 months.

Rafael Van Der Vaart

But now as the number of midfielders at Real Madrid has increased to a ridiculous number and the squad size has become greater than 25, it is obvious that some of the midfielder will be shown the door to make funds and reduce the squad number, and because of another play-maker coming it is only a matter of days that Rafael Van der Vaart will be shown the door.

I feel that it is unfair that Van der Vaart is the one that will be the one sold despite him being so passionate about the club and giving one solid performance after the other last season.

Van Der Vaart's quality isn't hidden from anyone, and it won't be a surprise that he would succeed with whichever club he signs, and the Real Madrid management will be seen with an egg on their face.

If selling Van der Vaart isn't a bad enough thought, the management have overlooked the fact that no one will be willing to pay €20 million or more as speculated at the start of the summer as everyone knows that Real Madrid are in a need to sell him after they inflated their squad with Mesut Ozil's signing. I expect €5-10 million less from the sale of Van der Vaart now, Real Madrid are no longer in a commanding position.

El Pirata

The other one that looks on his way out of Real Madrid is Esteban Granero, after a good start to last season, El Pirata faded away, and Jose Mourinho does not look interested in keeping the Canterano, Sevilla were reportedly interested in reuniting him with Alvaro Negredo, expect Granero to leave for €5-8 million.

And that is not the complete impact of the Mesut Ozil signing, the current young attacking midfielders in the academy (Alex Fernandez & Javi Hernandez), Dani Parejo and Sergio Canales, they will all see their opportunities of making it at Real Madrid cut viciously short.

Sergio Canales

Mesut Ozil's just 21, and the canteranos are just a few years younger than Mesut. Sergio Canales is 19, there is just no age difference between the two attacking midfielders, so it is obvious that Sergio Canales will see his chances cut short, and that is one thing no Real Madrid fan would like.

Sergio Canales has won many fans over with his performances last season and in the pre-season. It would be disappointing to see Sergio Canales on the bench, this will surely hamper his growth as a player.

The Canteranos don't even get their chances with older players at the team, it will make it even more impossible for them to break in the first team with a younger player in the team.

Real Madrid could have got Mesut Ozil for free next season but economically Mesut Ozil's signing is still a wonderful one. Mesut Ozil is one of my favorites but it's the effects like the possible exit of Van der Vaart & Granero, the reduction of the chances for the canteranos and Sergio Canales which reduce the sweetness of this transfer.

What do you think of the transfer?

Hala Madrid!

Official: Real Madrid Sign World Cup Star Mesut Ozil

Real Madrid have made it official on their website that they have signed Mesut Ozil from Werder Bremen.

According to the newspapers Real Madrid have paid €15 million for the 21 year-old playmaker. Mesut Ozil was the best play-maker in the World Cup.

Mesut was persued by FC Barcelona and Manchester United in the summer but Real Madrid beat them to the punch and have signed a player with immense skill who has a lot of years of football in him.

Ozil will undergo a medical on Wednesday.

More of my views on the Mesut Ozil transfer to follow. Hala Madrid!

Source: Real Madrid Official Site.

Florentino Perez Thinking Of Shutting Down La Fabrica For Good [Satire]

"We don't need an academy, creating players is overrated!"

Real Madrid President—Florentino Perez today in a press conference declared that Real Madrid will be shutting down their academy for good, and that the players in the academy will all be all sold for prices less than the price of the cellphones they have on them.

Arsene Wenger & Michel were the first ones to respond to the news and they quickly bought players of all ages, shapes and sizes by the dozen.

The news was taken surprisingly well by the fans of Real Madrid who said they were happy that they wouldn't have to moan all the time about a certain player from the academy not getting time in the first team and how it is unfair that some random 19 year old chick from Argentina is getting chances before a good prospect of the academy.

The Canteranos were the ones most pleased with the news because they think that now that they'll play at different clubs without a buy-back clause, Real Madrid will actually value them and pay some attention to them after they create a name for themselves with different teams, they are 100% sure that Real Madrid will spend millions to buy them and they would get to play for the team they supported since they were little kids after a season or two at max!

This is what Florentino Perez said when he was asked for the reasons of this decision, he said (English translation),  

"I didn't even realize there was something like the academy at Real Madrid, I thought they had shut it down after Iker Casillas graduated from there. Besides it's not like these kids were talented enough to succeed at Real Madrid, you have to be as talented as Drenthe and Gago to make it at Real Madrid!" 

Florentino Perez further went on to say:

"Trophies are the only thing that counts in my books, it's not like the Juvenil A did the double of the European Championship and the Domestic League last year! The academy can be considered a successful one only if almost all the teams in the academy ended up with a trophy or more and ours didn't, it's just a waste of our time and money and it is best to pull the plug on this sham, let these "players" be mediocre like Juan Mata somewhere else!"

I myself was at the press conference when Perez declared that the Canteranos were going up for sale, I tried to buy Pablo Sarabia but unfortunately I fell €5 short and missed out on making a huge profit. :(

Official: Girona Sign Marcos Tebar: Tebar Is Cheaper Than An iPhone

Marcos Tebar

Real Madrid have let the 24 year old central midfielder—Marcos Tebar join Girona in Liga Adelante for a free.

But because of the rules of the Spanish FA, Girona had to pay a nominal fee to Real Madrid, which is a mere €100.

Yes, you read that right, it is just €100 and No, I didn't miss a k or kilos or 3 zeros. Yeah, just a hundred.

According to Girona's official website they are very happy to have him back (Tebar was on loan to Girona last season) because he is very much a part of their plans.

I want to thank him for his 12 seasons he gave to the club and wish him the best of luck, may he guide Girona to a promotion in the Primera division! Hala Madrid!

Source: Girona FC Official Website (Spanish)

Bayern Munich - Real Madrid: 0-0 (P: 2-4): Gracias San Iker

Photo courtsey: @kaushiklakshman

Whenever you hype up something in your head you are bound to be disappointed, such was the case of the supposedly biggest game of Real Madrid's pre-season's campaign.

The fatigue due to travel was clear on the players who played for their countries in the mid-week international friendlies, and because of that the team wasn't able to perform well as a whole.

But if there was a man on the field who looked as sharp as ever, it was the man with the captain's armband—Iker Casillas. San Iker produced one brilliant save after the another, saved 3 penalties (one in regular time) to win Real Madrid Franz Beckenbauer's testimonial match.

Couldn't imagine what the scoreline would have read if it wasn't for Iker Casillas.

If you thought Arjen Robben was pissed because of the 2 saves made by San Iker in the World Cup final, can't say what was going through Franck Ribery's mind.

I could have done my usual match review but the match had nothing to be reviewed, it was too boring, the players were so tired that they didn't even bother to press Bayern Munich to win the ball back. Xabi was too tired and wasn't efficient in winning the ball back like he usually is, his distribution was okay, but Xabi Alonso'll certainly be better after some rest.

Sami Khedira and Xabi Alonso's partnership needs time and like I said Xabi was tired, that didn't help their case either, I'm positive that this partnership will improve though.

Sergio Canales hardly got on the ball, well the attack as a whole struggled because the ball winners were struggling, none of the players in attack, be it Cristiano Ronaldo, Gonzalo Higuain or Sergio Canales looked in form.

Gonzalo Higuain missed a clear header from Pedro Leon's cross in the early goings of the game, Pipita also had a tougher chance when Cristiano Ronaldo crossed across the face of goal.

Only Pedro Leon was the one who looked like any danger to the Bayern Munich defense, good match from him, he even tracked back a lot and helped out Sergio Ramos, a LOT.

Garay might be out for a few weeks

Sergio Ramos was in vacation mode in the LA Galaxy game and he was too tired in this game as he travelled to Mexico in midweek, Franck Ribery gave Sergio Ramos headaches, and he even conceded a penalty by tackling Franck in the box, even when Sergio tackled Franck, he lost the ball by passing or clearing poorly, a game to forget for Sergio Ramos.

The central pairing of Carvalho-Garay and Carvalho-Albiol were okay, not much to be said about that.

Another negative from the game is that Garay has dislocated his right kneecap, he will undergo an MRI scan and then the extent of the injury would be determined after that, the moment I saw his knee buckle, I had a feeling he might be out for a few weeks.

Marcelo looked okay, can't say much, but this was a better defensive performance for the Brazillian.

The substitutes didn't change much, but Karim looked good, even crossed one for Cristiano, which would have been a goal was it not for the Bayern keeper—Kraft. Di Maria looked good too, I think he'll come good, just needs more time with the team, I have to stop being so critical of him. Van Der Vaart had an opportunity to score but he could only find the side-netting.

I was thankful that time wasn't added on after the 45 minutes of the half and that the game didn't go to extra time and went straight to penalties because I don't think it was humanly possible to watch one more minute of that game.

The team has to back up their arrogance with their performances and if they want to win the number of trophies that they predict for the season then they have to step-up their game and performances such as these shouldn't be repeated.

It was a ridiculously large trophy!

Real Madrid can be let off the hook, by saying that the team was tired and at least they didn't look so pleased with themselves after they were handed the "trophy," but then they should give a strong performance against Standard Liege on Tuesday after they are rested! Hala Madrid!

Yellow Legal Pad: Ricardo Carvalho

If you have seen How I Met Your Mother's every single episode, you will be familiar with the yellow legal pad that Ted Mosby (Josh Radnor) uses to make a list of pros and cons, so as a tribute to one of my favorite TV shows ever, I have decided to call all my pro and con list posts (from now on) as the "Yellow Legal Pad." I hope you guys like the idea for the name of the post.

 Real Madrid finalized Ricardo Carvalho's deal two days ago, Carvalho is due his medical with Real Madrid, and after a medical Ricardo will hold a press-conference at 13:00 CET. Ricardo Carvalho has been around for a long time and everyone knows what he can do, but still lets look at what he brings to the team.

Pros:

• Ricardo Carvalho has played more than 10 years at the top level in England and Portugal, and such an experienced player would be a welcome addition to the young defense of Real Madrid, Ricardo can provide excellent guidance to the defenders.
• Ricardo Carvalho has already played with Pepe in Portugal and has worked with Jose Mourinho at Porto and Chelsea.
• He signed for just €8 million, which is acceptable for one of the best central defenders in the English Premier League.
• €25 million won't be spent on Thiago Silva.
• What he lacks in strength he can more than make up with hard tackles, love the way he wins the ball.

Cons:

• Carvalho's 32 years old and seems like a temporary fix as he's only been given a 2 year contract.
• Last two seasons of Ricardo Carvalho have been plagued with injuries and played only 33 league games of the 76 in those two seasons.
• Not quite sure of it, but it is likely that Raul Albiol will lose his place in the starting eleven.

With all that being said, I believe that Ricardo Carvalho's signing is a very good one, looking at all the aspects of the deal, his deal was the better than  those who were linked with the Real Madrid and the best thing about the transfer is that ridiculous money wasn't spent. It's great to have Ricardo Carvalho at Real Madrid! Hala Madrid!

Official: Real Madrid Agree Ricardo Carvalho Deal With Chelsea

Real Madrid have agreed terms with Chelsea for the transfer of Ricardo Carvalho, according to AS & Marca, the deal is believed to be around the region €8 million. The terms of the transfer haven't been disclosed yet.

The transfer is a bit of a shocker as Jose Mourinho had denied the signing of Ricardo Carvalho just a few days ago in an interview by saying that he won't sign Carvalho due to his age.

More on the transfer soon.

Bienvenido Ricardo! Hala Madrid!

Sources: Chelsea FC Official Site, Real Madrid Official Site (Spanish)

Remind Me Again, Who's This Thiago Silva You Talk Of?

I think I've seen this guy before, no, probably haven't!

So I've been hearing this name a lot lately, Thigao Silva. It's being used a lot recently by AS & mostly Marca, he's said to be this central defender who'll cost €25 million to Real Madrid, honestly I've never heard of him before!

He's costing €25 million, therefore I presume, he's someone world-class, is captain for his club & country, has mad ball skills, he just looks at the players and they are dispossessed of the ball and is probably so young yet so experienced that the club that owns him don't want to let him go, I'm guessing he's just 17 years old!

I'm just fooling around, I know who Thiago Silva is, I'm just trying to make sense of the €25 million price-tag on a player who's 26, who's club's defense can be ran ragged if 10 men aren't defending or how this guy wasn't even on the list from which the players were selceted for the World Cup by Brazil.

When you repeat a lie for a long time it starts to sound like the truth, and such is the case of Thiago Silva's transfer rumor, Marca (obviously) were the first one's to start this rumor, they repeated it long enough so that more and more sources started to believe it was true and they started running with it.

You ask, why I'm so sure?

Well for starters, one thing I've learnt this transfer window is that it is great that Jose Mourinho has a say in all the transfers, and the other thing is that Jose Mourinho isn't stupid, but obviously Marca is. Jose Mourinho said no to the ludicrous demands of Morrati and Internazionale for Maicon, who's a world-class player and reduced his offer to €22 million for Maicon.

Now explain to me, why a man who isn't willing to go any higher than €22 million for a world-class defender who is a regular for the Brazillian national team would pay €25 million to a virtual unknown (comparatively speaking, of course)?

Got an answer?

I have it, he won't! So Marca should stop wasting our time and theirs too, and come up with something better than this Thiago Silva bull-crap.

And Eduardo Inda, the €17 million for Romelu Lukaku are a good start by the way, you dumbass!

Hala Madrid!

LA Galaxy-Real Madrid: 2-3: The Gonzalo Higuain Show

Pedro Leon scored his first goal for RM

Real Madrid have ended their two match tour of North America with a win and with the same scoreline. Real Madrid defeated LA Galaxy 2-3 at the Rose Bowl in front of an audience of 89,000.

Line-Ups:

Real Madrid: Dudek (Casillas: 46'), Sergio Ramos (Arbeloa: 46'), Albiol (Pepe: 46'), Garay, Drenthe (Marcelo: 46'), Lass (Gago: 46'), Mahamadou Diarra (Xabi Alonso: 46'), Granero (Cristiano Ronaldo: 46'), Di Maria (Pedro Leon: 46', Alvaro Morata: 88'), Van der Vaart (Canales: 46', Alex Fernandez: 90'), Benzema (Higuain: 46')

LA Galaxy: Ricketts (Perk: 46'), Berhalter (Leonardo: 63'), Franklin (De la Garza: 63'), Gonzalez (Jordan: 76'), Dunivant (Lewis: 70'), Juninho (Klein: 63'), Stephens (Cazumba: 70'), Birchall, Donovan (Kirovski: 63'), Mathis (Bowen: 25'), Buddle (Magee: 46')


 Goals:

• 40': 1-0: Dunivant: Horrible set-play defending from Real Madrid allowed Dunivant to put the ball in the goal after a lot of confusion.
• 45': 2-0: Landon Donovan (P): Drenthe kung-fu kicks Juninho, gives the penalty, Donovan sends Dudek the wrong way and slots in coolly.
• 52': 2-1: Gonzalo Higuain: Gonzalo Higuain gets a sublime pass from Cristiano Ronaldo, Pipita scores in between the keeper's legs and the comeback is on.
• 62': 2-2: Gonzalo Higuain: Pipita recieves the ball back in the box from Gago, after Garay's header is saved and cleared out of the box, Gonzalo Higuain switches from the left to the right foot and curls it from the outside of his right foot, sublime finish.
• 71': 2-3: Pedro Leon: Gonzalo Higuain combined with Sergio Canales and started the move, brilliant return back-heel pass from Canales sets Higuain free, Perk saves, the ball falls to Pedro Leon who is outside the box, remontada, Pedro Leon scores his first goal for Real Madrid.

Highlights:

Post-Match Interviews:

Jose Mourinho: "I liked the team's mentality" (Source: Real Madrid Official Site)
Sergio Canales & Pedro Leon: "Mourinho is very professional" (Source: Real Madrid Official Site)



Injury Update: Pepe

Kepler Laveran Lima Ferreira, "Pepe" finished the match against the LA Galaxy with discomfort on his left soleus and has possibly sustained an injury. Further tests are pending.

(Source: Real Madrid.com)

Notes:


I don't like the kick-offs so early in the morning, and I hate it even more when I miss one half of the game due to that, but after reading a lot about the first half, I'm glad I missed the first half, if I had seen it, it would have been a very crappy start to my day. Don't worry though, I won't be so off about the first half in this post, as I know quite a bit about that half now, thanks to the highlights, the comments on Real Madrid Offside, AS, Marca & Defensa Central. I like to give researched information to my readers.

• Set-piece defending was awful in the first half, quite unlike a Jose Mourinho team, might be due to the fact that Sergio Ramos and Raul Albiol have only joined a few days ago and might still be in vacation mode. And also the fact that Drenthe can't defend.
• Royston Drenthe can't defend, the kung-fu kick on Juninho that resulted in the penalty is one of the many examples of that. I can't defend Ricky anymore, he has to be sold, not loaned like I advocated previously.
• Rafael Van der Vaart can create, and he needs someone to finish the chances he makes, Di Maria and Benzema need to improve their finishing.
• Granero's ideal position isn't on the wing, neither is it as a playmaker just behind the striker, he will be much more suited in a withdrawn central midfield role just ahead of the defensive midfielder.
• Cristiano Ronaldo is for the lack of a better word amazing, the Cristiano Ronaldo that passes the ball to his team-mates is a treat to watch.
• Gonzalo Higuain is a phenomenal forward and those who said Pipita isn't Jose Mourinho's type of striker have to start eating their words because Jose Mou has been nothing but full of praise for the Argentine's link-up play and smart forward runs.
• Sergio Canales is ________________. (Fill in the blank with your favorite adjective that you use to describe someone who is awesome!). I can't get enough of him, I want to see him play again and again, he was one of the reason I didn't want the match to end!
• I have a very strong feeling Pedro Leon will start over Angel Di Maria when the season starts.

Next on the pre-season schedule, Bayern Munich, European timings, I won't miss this. I hope Real Madrid give a better performance defensively in Germany. Hala Madrid!

Eugenio Martinez Bravo Has The Right Ideas For Real Madrid

Eugenio Martinez Bravo

Those of you who have been reading my stuff for a long time, know that I don't like dealing with the money issues or the politics related with Real Madrid. But when there is something related to the academy, you can expect me to know about it.

The man in the photo on the right is Eugenio Martinez Bravo, president of the Plataforma Blanca group, Eugenio tried running for the post of president last time around, but couldn't as he wasn't able to come up with the money required to stand in the Presidential election.

Eugenio Martinez is called the "White Laporta," a title I hope is because of him advocating for the proper use of the academy and not because of the corruption, lies, politics and the independence bull-s**t.

Eugenio has taken up some really great points in his interviews which I have read, and I am very impressed by this man, if these points are taken up by the management it would be really good for Real Madrid, I'll be covering those points in this post and will state the sources at the end.

Short-Sighted Sporting Model

He has said that Florentino Perez's model is short sighted not because of the age of the players but because no player has stayed for a long time in the club in the past few years. And he backed up his arguments by stating the numbers and showing that despite signing 53 players since 2000 and spending a whopping €1 billion putting on a debt of €700 million only Sergio Ramos and Iker Casillas are the remaining player since the start of 2005-06 season.

Eugenio blamed Florentino Perez completely for such a disaster but I don't believe that only Florentino Perez is to be blamed here because Ramon Calderon was the president from 2006 to 2009, but you have to agree the numbers are shocking and something needs to be done.

Treatment Of Managers

Another point that was taken up by Eugenio was the way managers have been treated at Real Madrid, he criticized the way that Del Bosque was sacked by Florentino Perez and also pointed out that Florentino didn't learn from his mistakes when he dealt with Manuel Pellegrini, and I'm sure no one will argue over the fact that Real Madrid don't even think once let alone twice when it comes to sacking managers and this has to change.

More Spanish Players

With Kaka and Benzema turning out to be flops, Eugenio said it would have been wiser if Real Madrid had tried to sign either David Villa, David Silva or Fernando Llorente (Athletic Bilbao), this point I don't agree much, because he didn't say anything about the success of Cristiano Ronaldo. This point is debatable because Kaka and Benzema are good players, it wasn't expected that they won't succeed.

Mis-treatment Of The Canteranos

Eugenio also raised a point that I also stress many times, about how the academy players should be given preference over players like Gago and Drenthe in the first team, would it not make much more sense to give some academy players a chance instead of some untested foreigner?

He also said that money won't be made if Real Madrid chase and buy the Cristianos and Kakas from the Manchesters and Milans, it would be better to produce the new Cristianos and Kaka. He believes the academy has the potential to do so.

Eugenio also doesn't like how the Canteranos are used as currency for other signings (eg. Rodrigo for Angel Di Maria), he says the buy-back clause is okay but he would prefer to give them a chance at Real Madrid. And he stated his displeasure of the recent sales of the Canteranos by saying, "One day the major signing of Real Madrid will be Marcos Alonso."

Eugenio Martinez Bravo is waiting for his moment and he will run for presidency of Real Madrid in the future and when he does I hope he wins the elections, he is the man with the right ideas for Real Madrid. Hala Madrid!

I've just covered the sporting part, if you want to read more about Eugenio Martinez Bravo and how we wants the changes at Real Madrid, here are the sources for this post (all in Spanish):
Plataforma Blanca
Defensa Central
Menorca

Kaka Should Have To Earn His Place In The Squad After His Surgery

Does he deserve to wear this kit?

After reading thoughts of Corey on Real Madrid Offside and the comments there on the issue of Kaka's surgery and all, I felt inspired to do a post of my own.

Kaka came to Real Madrid last summer as the favorite signing of all Madridistas, many people liked him better than Cristiano Ronaldo, one of them being me.

Only in one season at Real Madrid, Kaka's popularity between the Madridistas has dropped dramatically. Over the last season Kaka didn't show the form that is expected from a player worth €65 million, stayed injured for long stretches in the season and showed he cares more about AC Milan than he does for Real Madrid.

And Kaka did nothing to help his case as he went to play the World Cup for Brazil ignoring his injury which could have ended his career.

Because of his 3-4 month lay-off due to the recent surgery many fans want Kaka to be sold and want as much money that can be recuperated. Can't say I blame them, who would like to see a player collecting a big-fat pay-check who shows no responsibility towards the club and has no passion for the club they he plays for?!

I don't doubt Kaka's quality, no one does, everyone knows deep inside that IF he fully recovers from all of his injuries (left knee's meniscus injury which he underwent surgery for, sports hernia, and the pubic injury) , he can be really important for the team.

I want Kaka to stay because class never dies and also the fact that no team would pay close to what Real Madrid spent on him and they would take a heavy loss financially if he is sold.

The lay-off of Kaka isn't worrying me because I am pretty confident that both Van Der Vaart and Canales can do a dandy job playing as a playmaker and they won't make us miss "the Kaka that plays for Real Madrid." What is worrying me is the policy that Real Madrid applies for star players like Kaka, the players filling in for the star are always relegated to the bench despite doing a good job.

I want to see Rafael Van der Vaart and Sergio Canales being given a fair chance to start for the team even after Kaka returns fully fit from injury, Kaka should have to fight for his place just like Gonzalo Higuain did at ths start of the last season, no more star status, it should all be on merit.

The reason why I say this is because Kaka has lost the respect he got from the Madridistas and if he starts for Real Madrid due to his star-power, they won't like him even further and more and more fans would start asking for his sale.

Kaka needs to change on and off the field, he needs to show the same passion for Real Madrid like he had for AC Milan and start performing like he did for them because the Madridistas have made it clear, "If you don't have passion for the club, you don't belong in the club!" Hala Madrid!

Club America- Real Madrid: 2-3: The Era Of Jose Mourinho Is Here

Sergio Canales is a crack!

Squad Number Changes:

• Cristiano Ronaldo # 7.
• Karim Benzema # 9.
• Esteban Granero # 11.
• Sergio Canales # 16.
• Angel Di Maria # 22
• Pedro Leon # 21
• Xabi Alonso # 14.
• Antonio Adan # 13 wore the # 13 shirt, didn't see what Dudek wore so might be they shared the number for this game.
• Jerzy Dudek #25 [Edit: Thanks to DyDy]
  

First half squad: 4-3-3 / 4-5-1
Dudek (GK), Juanfran (RB), Garay (CB), Pepe (CB), Marcelo (C) (LB), Lassana Diarra (CM), Gago (CM), Sergio Canales (AM), Cristiano Ronaldo (RM), Pedro Leon (LM), Benzema (ST)

Second half squad: 4-3-3 / 4-5-1
Adan (GK), Nacho (RB)—Morata (Sub: 84'), Garay (CB), Pepe (CB), Drenthe (LB), Lassana Diarra—Tebar (Sub: 69') (CM), Mahamadou Diarra (C) (CM), Granero (AM), Cristiano Ronaldo—Alex Fernandez (Sub: 84') (RM), Angel Di Maria (LM), Higuain (ST)


Goals:

• Sergio Canales: 34': Great link-up between Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema sees Benzema in the box, who slides the ball right for Sergio Canales to score. 0-1
• Gonzalo Higuain: 63': Brilliantly wighted pass from Cristiano Ronaldo frees Gonzalo Higuain who doesn't fail to score. 2-2
• Cristiano Ronaldo: 80': After having a brilliant game, Cristiano Ronaldo signs off with his characteristic free-kick.

Highlights:

Post-match Interviews:

Jose Mourinho: "Real and I have similar winning DNA"
Sergio Canales: "I am never going to forget my debut"

Notes:

I was hoping to do a better post than this, even tried watching the game, watched it but was distracted by my family members, power cut saw me lose 20 minutes at the start of the game. But I did manage to see all the goals live and let me tell you the goals that Real Madrid conceded were not good, poor defending, I was disappointed. Mourinho will definetly be furious over that.

The attack was brilliant as usual, don't understand why Karim Benzema drifts wide all the time when he is supposed to be the lone man up-front, he was almost always on the left wing, his link-up play was brilliant though. Sergio Canales was magnificent, I love him, defenitely a steal at just €4.5 million (+ €1 million for bringing him one season earlier).

Between the two new wingers, I liked Pedro Leon better, Angel Di Maria can do better, or I hope so.

Cristiano was just plain awesome, I don't know why people say he can't pass, because boy can he pass! They'd make more sense by saying he doesn't want to pass.

The most delightful thing was the contribution of the canteranos in the game, I was most impressed with Juanfran, an attacking winger who looked right at home in defense, Marcelo should take notes. Nacho who replaced Juanfran in the second half looked comfortable too. Tebar, Morata, Alex Fernandez all got a run in, I wanted to see more of them, but it's a start all right.

I'll be catching the LA Galaxy game and will do a proper review for that! Hala Madrid!

Mesut Ozil's Signing Might Make Dani Parejo's Return Improbabale

Mesut Ozil

If reports in AS are to be believed then Mesut Ozil will be the first signing of Real Madrid next season (2011-12), who'll join for free after seeing off the last year in his contract with Werder Bremen.

21 year old Mesut Ozil caught the eye of many big clubs like Real Madrid, Barcelona, Arsenal and Chelsea with amazing performances in the World Cup. Although Mesut Ozil can't talk with any teams before January 1, 2011, in Germany it is believed that Real Madrid are the front runners in the signing of Ozil.

Mesut Ozil is a good player and would be a good addition to the club and all but what would happen to the playmaker from the academy who plays with Getafe and just turned 21 in April—Dani Parejo?

Even withouht Mesut Ozil, Real Madrid have 3 playmakers—Kaka, Rafael Van Der Vaart and Sergio Canales, and that makes it really difficult for all of the players to get enough playing time. Lets take for granted that Rafael Van Der Vaart will leave next summer and Mesut Ozil will join, it still doesn't make it any better for Parejo.

Dani Parejo

Dani Parejo's immensly taleneted and it isn't every day that Alfredo Di Stefano calls some Canterano his favorite, last season should not be used to judge Parejo's quality as Parejo was mostly travelling with Spain U-21 and missed a lot of games for Getafe. Despite being away so much Dani Parejo started 16 games and made cameos in 12, scored 6 and assisted 4.

Dani Parejo has been impressive in Getafe's pre-season so far and will be much more regular with Getafe this season. With Getafe qualifying for Europa League last season, it will be a good platform for Dani Parejo to prove his quality, and I'm pretty sure Dani Parejo will be up for the challenge.

It's not that I don't like Mesut Ozil or I doubt his quality, it's just that I would love to see more Canteranos being given the chance, Real Madrid produce a LOT of talent, and it would be nice to see them in action FOR Real Madrid not AGAINST them. I would like to see Dani Parejo come back rather than Mesut Ozil signing for the club. Hala Madrid!

-----
Note: I hope you like the Opinion+News Update post. I find it rather un-interesting to just write a news piece, would definitely love the feedback.