2009 football/soccer summer transfer rumors

[babam11218719]

Originally Posted by CincoSeisDos

So Kaka to be unveiled tomorrow? 1130a Pacific?


Anyone heading out to any of the World Football Challenge matches?

I am going to the one in Atlanta. I wish we got a better matchup. Maybe Inter vs. Chelsea but whatever. Still probably my only chance to see a greatEuropean team like AC come to Atlanta.

 

[airjordanseattle23]

1640 BST: Maicon's agent has reassured Inter Milan fans that the highly-rated defender will remain at the San Siro next season. The Brazilian full-backhas been linked with Manchester City, Real Madrid and Chelsea this summer. (PA Sport)

1356 BST: Southampton's financial problems could see more players join David McGoldrick in leaving the club. McGoldrick joined Nottingham Forestfor a reported £1m on Monday, goalkeeper Kelvin Davis is set to join West Ham as his contract expires on Tuesday and midfielder Andrew Surman has been linkedwith Wolves.
Full story: Southampton Daily Echo

1243 BST: Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti says Paolo Maldini, a former player of his at AC Milan, has turned down an offer to become part of his coaching staffat Stamford Bridge. (Radio Deejay)

1145 BST: Arsenal target Felipe Melo has moved to end speculation about his future by signing a one-year contract extension at Fiorentina. (PressAssociation)

1120 BST: Manchester United and Tottenham look set to miss out on Mirko Vucinic after his agent said the forward will not be leaving Roma. (PressAssociation)

1022 BST: Inter Milan defender Maicon may have edged closer to a move after the club refused to give in to his demands for a pay increase. TheBrazilian has been linked with Manchester City, Real Madrid and Chelsea. (Press Association)

0815 BST: Former England midfielder Peter Reid has rejected speculation he will quit as coach of Thailand to take charge of League One club Southampton.(Press Association)

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TRANSFER GOSSIP

Samuel Eto'o wants a £12.5m signing-on fee to join Manchester City. The Barcelona striker has already been offered wages of £250,000 a week bythe Eastlands club.
Full story: The Sun

Or the Cameroon striker is looking for a £15m golden handshake from Barcelona otherwise the move to City is off.
Full story: Daily Mirror

Chelsea are poised to complete a hat-trick of signings by landing CSKA Moscow forward Yuri Zhirkov, Manchester City forward Daniel Sturridge andMiddlesbrough goalkeeper Ross Turnbull.
Full story: Daily Mirror

Arsenal have been stunned by Andrey Arshavin's revelation that he would be "really happy" to play for Barcelona if he gets the chance.
Full story: The Sun

Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso will holds talks with manager Rafael Benitez this week over a possible move to Real Madrid.
Full story: The Sun

Meanwhile, Reds defender Alvaro Arbeloa is set to seal a switch to Real for about £5m. (The Independent)

Aston Villa are ready to pay £5m for Espanyol forward Luis Garcia, who is also wanted by Porto.
Full story: The Sun

Villa are also set to bid £5m for Middlesbrough midfielder Tuncay.
Fullstory: Daily Mirror

Tottenham have joined the chase for Groningen's Sweden international striker Marcus Berg but they may need to pay £10m to beat Everton to hissignature.
Full story: DailyMirror

Spurs have told Villarreal they want cash plus Sebastien Eguren and Marcos Senna in exchange for striker Roman Pavlyuchenko. (The Times)

West Ham are trying to hijack Hull's £3.4m move for Nancy striker Marc-Antoine Fortune.
Full story: Daily Mirror

Fulham have offered £2.2m for Almeria striker Kalu Uche. (The Sun)

Birmingham want to sign Tottenham defender Gareth Bale on a season-long loan deal. (Daily Star)

Wolves are set to sign Reading striker Kevin Doyle for a club record fee of £6.5m.
Full story: The Sun

Huddersfield will pay £1m to sign Bristol Rovers striker Rickie Lambert. (The Sun)

Ipswich boss Roy Keane is close to completing a £1m deal for QPR full-back Damien Delaney. Keane also wants to make a double raid on former club Sunderlandto sign defender Nyron Nosworthy and winger Carlos Edwards. (Daily Star)

Burnley are fighting it out with Cardiff in the race to sign £2.5m-rated Doncaster defender Mat Mills. (Daily Star)

OTHER GOSSIP

Carlos Tevez has accused Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson of blowing the chance to win the Champions League final by dropping him. TheArgentine striker, whose United contract expires today, said: "He made a mistake to leave me on the bench."
Full story: Daily Mirror
Former Aston Villa manager David O'Leary says his successor Martin O'Neill has not helped the club progress.
Full story: Daily Mirror

 

[xblaze23]

Florentino Perez says that the next signing will be announced either Wednesday or Thursday. Marca are saying it'll be Karim Benzema for 35m Euro. I'mthinking its going to be Alvaro Arbeloa. Xabi Alonso's situation is a bit more complicated. Exciting times.

 

[zizou]

lol yea for a real madrid supporter.

 

[jjgrt5]

Im lost.... so at this moment what seems to be Real's starting line-up?

 

[zizou]

probably something like:

casillas

ramos - albiol - pepe - marcelo

some combination of kaka, gago, diarra (but which one?), ronaldo

higuain, raul

lol i dunno. something like that i guess. if they sign benzema, he'll probably take raul's place in the starting xi.

 

[carlos tevez]

Raul is not going to be the starting striker for them...no way in he.ll.

It's still to early to predict their starting lineup. As of now, it seems like Casillas, Ramos, Albiol, Pepe, Kaka, Ronaldo and maybe Higuain are the onlyones with guaranteed spots.

 

[fuser86]

Too bad for Saviola, the guy is a class act. He patiently waited on that team for an opportunity but it never materialized.

Really like that guy, hopefully someone gives him a chance to prove his worth again. A lot of Argentine players have fallen off. D'alessandro is ghost,Aimar is unheard of, Crespo(another class act) gets no PT. I know one thing, Riquelme is gonna want in on the Argentina squad sooner than later, especiallywith that Big match up with Brasil in August.

And plus he's not going to want to miss playing a world cup when he's in his prime years.

 

[fuser86]

Originally Posted by babam11218719

Originally Posted by CincoSeisDos

So Kaka to be unveiled tomorrow? 1130a Pacific?


Anyone heading out to any of the World Football Challenge matches?

I am going to the one in Atlanta. I wish we got a better matchup. Maybe Inter vs. Chelsea but whatever. Still probably my only chance to see a great European team like AC come to Atlanta.

Going to the Chelsea v Inter match in Pasadena...yay!!

Walking distance from my house, that's so dope, get to see El Pupi...all-time great and Julio Caesar with his amazing saves.

 

[wttm]

Originally Posted by Fuser86

Too bad for Saviola, the guy is a class act. He patiently waited on that team for an opportunity but it never materialized.

Really like that guy, hopefully someone gives him a chance to prove his worth again. A lot of Argentine players have fallen off. D'alessandro is ghost, Aimar is unheard of, Crespo(another class act) gets no PT. I know one thing, Riquelme is gonna want in on the Argentina squad sooner than later, especially with that Big match up with Brasil in August.

And plus he's not going to want to miss playing a world cup when he's in his prime years.

Riquelme said he's done with his national team duties as long as Maradona's in helm.
I hope his aspiration to play in one more WC is great enough for him to sit down talk it out with Maradona.
Also, with so many Argentine players being ghost, the team is still the ones to beat in every tourney

 

[xblaze23]

Agreement in principle reached which will send Lucho Gonzales to Olympique Marseille for 18m Euro + 6m if certain objectives are met.

http://www.om.net/fr/home/0/Accueil

I am surprised by this. He had been named captain for the upcoming season. The price seems low when compared to what previous Porto headliners went for. Thenyou could argue that OM isn't a "step up" from FC Porto. I wonder how much they can give up and still control the title. Lisandro Lopez isconstantly linked to Olympique Lyon. Aly Cissokho's transfer saga with AC Milan has not died yet.

 

[airjordanseattle23]

^ if i was a footballer id rather play for a top ligue 1 team than a top portuguese team. just me though.


TRANSFER GOSSIP

Barcelona will turn their attentions to prising midfielder Cesc Fabregas away from Arsenal after learning that previous target Franck Ribery wouldprefer to leave Bayern Munich for Real Madrid.
Full story: Daily Star

The proposed move of Samuel Eto'o to Manchester City may be wrecked by the Cameroon striker's demands for a slice of any transfer fee Barcelonareceive.
Full story: Daily Mirror

Blackburn manager Sam Allardyce will offer former Everton winger Andy van der Meyde, who is currently without a club, the chance to resurrect hiscareer at Ewood Park. (The Sun)

Real Madrid are delaying a move for Liverpool's Xabi Alonso until a sell-on clause with the midfielder's former club Real Sociedad expires later inJuly.
Fullstory: Daily Mail

Having been frustrated in their pursuit of Felipe Melo, Arsenal will go head to head with Tottenham for the signature of Marseille midfielder LoikCana.
Full story: Daily Express

After securing Wigan's Antonio Valencia, Manchester United could now bolster their forward line with a move for £11m-rated Toulouse forward Andre-PierreGignac.
Full story: The Star

Or it may be that Lyon's Karim Benzema is next on United manager Sir Alex Ferguson's list of priorities at Old Trafford, with the Franceinternational forward's team-mate Miralem Pjanic claiming a £38m move is in the offing.
Full story: The Times

CSKA Moscow left-back Yuri Zhirkov, Manchester City striker Daniel Sturridge and Middlesbrough goalkeeper Ross Turnbull will be the first three playersbrought to Chelsea by new manager Carlo Ancelotti. Full story: DailyTelegraph

Michael Owen is holding out for offers from Aston Villa and Everton as his Newcastle United contract comes to an end today.
Full story: TheIndependent

Brazilian forward Jo will return to Everton on loan next season, with Manchester City boss Mark Hughes unable to promise him a regular first-team place.
Full story: The Sun

Aston Villa are keeping tabs on Arsenal's Philippe Senderos as well as fellow defenders Sylvain Distin of Portsmouth and David Wheater ofMiddlesbrough. (Daily Mail)

Tottenham are weighing up an approach for Lokomotiv Moscow and Switzerland goalkeeper Eldin Jakupovic.
Full story: The Times

Celtic's hopes of signing West Brom's Marc-Antoine Fortune have been given a boost as the forward has stalled on a proposed move to Hull.(Daily Record)

Ipswich manager Roy Keane is poised to raid former club Manchester United for winger Lee Martin.
Full story: Daily Mirror

Bolton have moved to snap up Sean Davis on a free transfer after he turned down Portsmouth's offer of a new deal, while Swansea's FerrieBodde could line up alongside him in midfield if a £2.5m switch goes through. (The Sun)

Middlesbrough are preparing for life in the Championship with a £400,000 bid for Sheffield United midfielder Nick Montgomerie.
Full story: Daily Mirror

Blackburn's South Africa striker Benni McCarthy is concerned that a lack of first-team games may be harming his chances of appearing for thehost nation in next summer's World Cup and may move to Spanish side Celta Vigo.
Full story: Daily Mirror

OTHER GOSSIP

Manchester United defender Nemanja Vidic has said that AC Milan, Barcelona and Real Madrid have all enquired about the possibility of him leavingOld Trafford but, despite his wife's eagerness to move away from England, he is determined to stay put.
Fullstory: The Sun


Paul Ince could return to management with former club MK Dons after Roberto Di Matteo left for West Brom.
Full story: Daily Mirror

Three consortiums are weighing up offers for Newcastle but it is unlikely that the club will be sold before next week.
Full story: The Guardian

England coach Fabio Capello has told his scouts to monitor Sylvan Ebanks-Blake once the new Premier League season gets under way to see if the Wolvesstriker is ready for the step up to international football.
Full story: The Sun
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger says that the chance to develop the young players at the Gunners convinced him to stay at the Emiratesrather than join big-spending Real Madrid.
Full story: DailyMirror

 

[keepie uppie]

xblaze23 wrote:

---

Florentino Perez says that the next signing will be announced either Wednesday or Thursday. Marca are saying it'll be Karim Benzema for 35m Euro. I'm thinking its going to be Alvaro Arbeloa. Xabi Alonso's situation is a bit more complicated. Exciting times.

exciting times for sure,but you have to admit that Real needs to put in work with that defense,especially in the centre...
Arbeloa will provide good cover for Ramos at rightback should the deal goes through,but will that signal the exit door for Salgado?
Xabi Alonso is good,but is he really necessary?
Real already has Guti,2 x Diarra's,Sneijder,Van Der Vaart and Gago all vying for that midfield position...

also,i'm puzzled as to why they let Drenthe leave the club on loan - he might be useful for them next season...
did he perform badly last season or do they really wanna cut ties with Real's Dutch players?

zizou wrote:

---

and gago wears the #5 for argentina too.

i'm curious as to whether or not ronaldo will go with ronaldo or c.ronaldo. and i read somewhere that he trademarked cr9. so with saviola leaving, i guess he'll take the #9?

fat Ron trademarked the R9,i'm pretty sure...
and yeah,i'm certain CR's Madrid jersey will read "C. RONALDO",same as his Portugal jersey...
not too sure about him wearing the number 9 though,that's normally reserved for a striker...

zizou wrote:

---

probably something like:

casillas

ramos - albiol - pepe - marcelo

some combination of kaka, gago, diarra (but which one?), ronaldo

higuain, raul

lol i dunno. something like that i guess. if they sign benzema, he'll probably take raul's place in the starting xi.

Carlos Tevez wrote:

---

Raul is not going to be the starting striker for them...no way in he.ll.

It's still to early to predict their starting lineup. As of now, it seems like Casillas, Ramos, Albiol, Pepe, Kaka, Ronaldo and maybe Higuain are the only ones with guaranteed spots.

Raul is untouchable at the club...
he is to Real Madrid what Francesco Totti is to AS Roma...
and believe me,the captain's name will be the first on the team sheet...

personally,i feel Real need Robben...him and CR on the wings will create tons of scoring opportunities...
upfront,Raul and Nistelrooy have shown that they can play alongside each other,as evident when Real won the La Liga two seasons ago...

anyway,here's my pick for Real Madrid's starting 11 for next season(of course,this all depends on what happens during the transfer season):

Casillas
Ramos - Pepe - Heinze

- Marcelo(although he seems like a b-grade Roberto Carlos)
Ronaldo - Guti - Kaka - Robben
Raul - Nistelrooy
^ this lineup will leave players like Gago,M Diarra,L Diarra,Van Der Vaart,Sneijder,Huntelaar andHiguain on the bench...

Pellegrini got a big job on his hands to keep all these players happy somehow...

 

[Sinner]

Ruud will still be around? Really? I'm expecting Madrid to ship his injury-prone %*!% outta there...

 

[cincoseisdos]

Say it aint so

[h1]BREAKING NEWS Real Madrid Agree Karim Benzema Deal - Report[/h1] [h2]Karim Benzema looks to have had his next move decided...[/h2] [h4]1 Jul 2009 10:29:18[/h4]

Photo Gallery

Zoom

Lyon hot shot Karim Benzema in action for his side
[h4]Related Links[/h4]
Real Madrid have reached an agreement with Olympique Lyonnais to sign Karim Benzema and the deal will be made official in the next couple of days, according to reports in Spain.

Both Marca and AS state that the highly-rated French striker will become Los Merengues fourth big-money arrival of the summer after negotiations saw a deal reached.

With Manchester United preparing to make a move, Madrid president Florentino Perez moved to ensure that talks pushed things along and that an agreement was done to prevent Benzema going elsewhere.

Full report to follow...

The SUN is claiming the same while Independent and soccernet are stating SAF is closing in for 38M

I hate transfer windows

 

[xblaze23]

At this stage of the window, I can't really predict the lineup. I will say that Pellegrini does not seem to use out and out wingers. Remember, the signingsaren't complete and neither are the departures.

In: Kaka', Cristiano Ronaldo, Raul Albiol, Alvaro Negredo, Ezequiel Garay
Out: Fabio Cannavaro, Javier Saviola, Jordi Codina, Ruben De La Red**,
** Heart Issue, was told that he will not be registered next season. Unfortunate.

Loan deal is the best thing for Royston Drenthe. He was successful in December but that came to an end after he missed the 1v1 opporunity vs. Barcelona at CampNou. That play could have changed the dynamic of that game. The fans turned on him. He struggled to stay on his feet and was appeared nervous on the pitch. Heneeds to mature and develop cojones. He has some of the tools to be a successful winger but lacks polish and the mentality. He wasn't sold outright becausewe know he has the potential to be a good player.

Marcelo will primarily be a left sided midfielder/winger. He was very good towards the end of last season playing this role. As a LB, he was good offensivelybut lacked the defensive discipline. But, as a winger, his defensive efforts are above average whilst the offense remains the same. He proved himself with theperformances in the 2nd half of the season after the fans turned on him for a brief period. He reacted the way Drenthe should have. I'm happy for him.

Lassana Diarra is a starter in my opinion. Xabi would partner him. It'd be similiar to the Liverpool double-pivot. Lass, the destroyer. Xabi, the linkbetween defense and offense. Fernando Gago had a miserable 2nd half of the season which is prompting this move. Mahamadou Diarra was excellent before the longterm knee injury so its unclear what his future is. I like him alot but I admit he may be leaving this summer.

It is now being reported that the signing Florentino Perez spoke of is.. Karim Benzema. 35m Euro. This increases the chances that Ruud will be let go andHuntelaar sold. This also would officially eliminate RM from the David Villa sweepstakes. He's all yours boys.

@ Higuain/Benzema partnership.

 

[tonton32]

Originally Posted by CincoSeisDos

Say it aint so

[h1]BREAKING NEWS Real Madrid Agree Karim Benzema Deal - Report[/h1] [h2]Karim Benzema looks to have had his next move decided...[/h2] [h4]1 Jul 2009 10:29:18[/h4]

Photo Gallery

Zoom

Lyon hot shot Karim Benzema in action for his side
[h4]Related Links[/h4]
Real Madrid have reached an agreement with Olympique Lyonnais to sign Karim Benzema and the deal will be made official in the next couple of days, according to reports in Spain.

Both Marca and AS state that the highly-rated French striker will become Los Merengues fourth big-money arrival of the summer after negotiations saw a deal reached.

With Manchester United preparing to make a move, Madrid president Florentino Perez moved to ensure that talks pushed things along and that an agreement was done to prevent Benzema going elsewhere.

Full report to follow...

The SUN is claiming the same while Independent and soccernet are stating SAF is closing in for 38M

I hate transfer windows

cosign! i cant stand all the rumors flying around cause you never really know what to believe especially with the unpredictable nature of this years transfers.just start the signings already

 

[Sinner]

^Un-#u(kin-believable... man, they were REALLY upset at their 08/09 season... the thing is, will anything less than 2 pieces of silverware for the 09/10 seasonbe considered a failure? I'm sure there will be some initial 'gelling' issues, but overall, these guys are good enough to quickly adapt to eachothers play.

What titles are there? LaLiga title, King's Cup, Champion's League... what else?

 

[carlos tevez]

Originally Posted by Fuser86

Too bad for Saviola, the guy is a class act. He patiently waited on that team for an opportunity but it never materialized.

Really like that guy, hopefully someone gives him a chance to prove his worth again. A lot of Argentine players have fallen off. D'alessandro is ghost, Aimar is unheard of, Crespo(another class act) gets no PT. I know one thing, Riquelme is gonna want in on the Argentina squad sooner than later, especially with that Big match up with Brasil in August.

And plus he's not going to want to miss playing a world cup when he's in his prime years.

Saviola has been passed around like the flu over the past few years. Barca, Real, Sevilla, Monaco and now Benfica in a 5 year span

Its hard to believe this is the same guy that was subject to so much hype when firstarrived to Barca.

About those guys you mentioned, Riquelme's creativity would be a huge boost for Argentina's midfield. I dont understand why the Argentine FA hiredBasile and then Maradona

It's not like their national team is intransition...this team is capable of being #1 in the world. Now it seems unlikely they'll do anything with Cokeaddona in charge.

 

[zizou]

Originally Posted by Keepie Uppie

xblaze23 wrote:

---

Florentino Perez says that the next signing will be announced either Wednesday or Thursday. Marca are saying it'll be Karim Benzema for 35m Euro. I'm thinking its going to be Alvaro Arbeloa. Xabi Alonso's situation is a bit more complicated. Exciting times.

exciting times for sure,but you have to admit that Real needs to put in work with that defense,especially in the centre...
Arbeloa will provide good cover for Ramos at rightback should the deal goes through,but will that signal the exit door for Salgado?
Xabi Alonso is good,but is he really necessary?
Real already has Guti,2 x Diarra's,Sneijder,Van Der Vaart and Gago all vying for that midfield position...

also,i'm puzzled as to why they let Drenthe leave the club on loan - he might be useful for them next season...
did he perform badly last season or do they really wanna cut ties with Real's Dutch players?

zizou wrote:

---

and gago wears the #5 for argentina too.

i'm curious as to whether or not ronaldo will go with ronaldo or c.ronaldo. and i read somewhere that he trademarked cr9. so with saviola leaving, i guess he'll take the #9?

fat Ron trademarked the R9,i'm pretty sure...
and yeah,i'm certain CR's Madrid jersey will read "C. RONALDO",same as his Portugal jersey...
not too sure about him wearing the number 9 though,that's normally reserved for a striker...

zizou wrote:

---

probably something like:

casillas

ramos - albiol - pepe - marcelo

some combination of kaka, gago, diarra (but which one?), ronaldo

higuain, raul

lol i dunno. something like that i guess. if they sign benzema, he'll probably take raul's place in the starting xi.

Carlos Tevez wrote:

---

Raul is not going to be the starting striker for them...no way in he.ll.

It's still to early to predict their starting lineup. As of now, it seems like Casillas, Ramos, Albiol, Pepe, Kaka, Ronaldo and maybe Higuain are the only ones with guaranteed spots.

Raul is untouchable at the club...
he is to Real Madrid what Francesco Totti is to AS Roma...
and believe me,the captain's name will be the first on the team sheet...

personally,i feel Real need Robben...him and CR on the wings will create tons of scoring opportunities...
upfront,Raul and Nistelrooy have shown that they can play alongside each other,as evident when Real won the La Liga two seasons ago...

anyway,here's my pick for Real Madrid's starting 11 for next season(of course,this all depends on what happens during the transfer season):

Casillas
Ramos - Pepe - Heinze

- Marcelo(although he seems like a b-grade Roberto Carlos)
Ronaldo - Guti - Kaka - Robben
Raul - Nistelrooy
^ this lineup will leave players like Gago,M Diarra,L Diarra,Van Der Vaart,Sneijder,Huntelaar and Higuain on the bench...

Pellegrini got a big job on his hands to keep all these players happy somehow...

salgado should have been gone years ago. but isn't he married to perez's daughter?

and they have a lot of central mids, but if they can get xabi alonso, i'd still try and get him. he'd be an upgrade over gago in my opinion. bothdiarras are typical defensive mids. xabi can offer help as a defensive mid too, but i think his passing and distribution is much better than gago's. i knowthey have guti, vdv, and sneijder too. but i wouldn't be surprised if the latter two end up leaving.

and i thought drenthe wanted to leave? i remember reading that he lost a lot of his confidence after beeing booed by the crowd during a game.

i know ronaldo (brazil) trademarked R9. i'm saying i read that cristiano trademarked CR9. and i know the 9 is a traditional striker's number. buti'm just saying what i've read. and it's the only "first squad" number that's left.

agree that raul is a god there, but higuain should be listed first if the manager wants to be objective. raul can still score, but if they get benzema, he andhiguain should be starting over raul.

but i agree it's still way too early to guess starting xi's.

but

at starting ronaldo/guti, kaka/robben in your starting midfield.that midfield will get run over. who's gonna provide protection for the defense when you have 6 attacking players? c'mon.

 

[zizou]

Originally Posted by SinnerP

Ruud will still be around? Really? I'm expecting Madrid to ship his injury-prone %*!% outta there...

i'd expect him to be on his way out too.

 

[zizou]

Originally Posted by xblaze23

At this stage of the window, I can't really predict the lineup. I will say that Pellegrini does not seem to use out and out wingers. Remember, the signings aren't complete and neither are the departures.

In: Kaka', Cristiano Ronaldo, Raul Albiol, Alvaro Negredo, Ezequiel Garay
Out: Fabio Cannavaro, Javier Saviola, Jordi Codina, Ruben De La Red**,
** Heart Issue, was told that he will not be registered next season. Unfortunate.

Loan deal is the best thing for Royston Drenthe. He was successful in December but that came to an end after he missed the 1v1 opporunity vs. Barcelona at Camp Nou. That play could have changed the dynamic of that game. The fans turned on him. He struggled to stay on his feet and was appeared nervous on the pitch. He needs to mature and develop cojones. He has some of the tools to be a successful winger but lacks polish and the mentality. He wasn't sold outright because we know he has the potential to be a good player.

Marcelo will primarily be a left sided midfielder/winger. He was very good towards the end of last season playing this role. As a LB, he was good offensively but lacked the defensive discipline. But, as a winger, his defensive efforts are above average whilst the offense remains the same. He proved himself with the performances in the 2nd half of the season after the fans turned on him for a brief period. He reacted the way Drenthe should have. I'm happy for him.

Lassana Diarra is a starter in my opinion. Xabi would partner him. It'd be similiar to the Liverpool double-pivot. Lass, the destroyer. Xabi, the link between defense and offense. Fernando Gago had a miserable 2nd half of the season which is prompting this move. Mahamadou Diarra was excellent before the long term knee injury so its unclear what his future is. I like him alot but I admit he may be leaving this summer.

It is now being reported that the signing Florentino Perez spoke of is.. Karim Benzema. 35m Euro. This increases the chances that Ruud will be let go and Huntelaar sold. This also would officially eliminate RM from the David Villa sweepstakes. He's all yours boys.

@ Higuain/Benzema partnership.

agree with everything you said.

would you rather have benzema or villa?

 

[otis dont play that]

Real Madrid are going insane. La Liga is going to be crazy.

 

[keepie uppie]

Originally Posted by zizou

but

at starting ronaldo/guti, kaka/robben in your starting midfield. that midfield will get run over. who's gonna provide protection for the defense when you have 6 attacking players? c'mon.

a team like Real Madrid thrives on playing attacking football...i thought you knew that already?

in 07/08,Real's attack-minded midfield of Guti,Sneijder and Robinho played for the most part of the season and won them the La Liga...
in 08/09,Real relied heavily on Gago and L. Diarra in the centre of their midfield and,well...we all know how that season ended for them...
and need i remind you that those two started for Real when they were totally outclassed by Liverpool(4-0

) and Barca(6-2

)...

so if you ask me,the only real(no pun intended) protection they need is from the fans...

 

[zizou]

yes, i know they thrive on attacking football.

but in 07/08, they still had m.diarra to cover for the attacking mids.

even with barca's attacking flair and style, they had guys like toure or keita that helped balance the midfield. not all clubs need a destroyer like am.diarra. man utd had success with a combination of fletcher, scholes, anderson, giggs in the center. but you still need some kind of balance.

08/09, the problem was more than just gago and l.diarra. they had no defense. cannavaro was old and inconsistent. no lb. and ramos struggled.

smh if you're blaming those two for the clubs problems last season.