I'm not a fan of posting on forums to say "RIP" to someone, or changing a Facebook status to mourn someone you've never met - and I'm certainly not a fan of bloody Twitter.
But today, you can't help but be moved by the passing of Sir Bobby Robson. Aged 76, we all knew he was dying, and we all knew it would come sooner rather than later, but the news still brings a lump to the throat.
The Bobby Robson you remember best depends on the your age. The oldest will remember the player who made his way to management at Fulham and, if memory serves, found out that he had been sacked by reading it on a newspaper billboard.
Those of a certain age will think of Ipswich, the unfancied, unfashionable club who won the FA Cup, had a stab at winning the league and then won the UEFA Cup under his tutelage.
Then you have my era and those just around it who will remember him as the man who took England to within an unfortunate deflection of the World Cup final in 1990. Before that, only Diego Maradona's Hand of God goal halted England's charge four years earlier, and although the less said about Euro 88 the better, Italia 90 still holds a strong place in my heart.
After that, Sir Bobby headed abroad and PSV, Sporting Lisbona and Barcelona all had the advantage of his sublime skills, before, in 1999, he finally got his dream job and took over at Newcastle. He never brought them huge success to the Magpies, but when you look at where they are now, it's hard to say that he didn't do a good job.
Having left Newcastle, he was finished as a manager but he remained in the public eye and was probably still one of football's best-loved characters - not least for THAT Shola Ameobi/Carl Cort story.
Sir Bobby was a great man, a kind man and one that will surely be missed. You can only presume that God needed a new manager for his football team earlier this morning... And, I bet their fortunes will improve straightaway.
RIP Sir Bobby.
* Blog post by BFF member Jon
Friday, 31 July 2009
The Real cost of revolution
*Blog post by BFF member Jericho
Having suffered the shame of of watching arch-rivals Barcelona sweep all before their path (including a famous 2-6 reverse at the Bernabeu) to win a historic treble of the Champions League, La Liga and King's Cup and win plaudits for the football they played in doing so, Real Madrid are desperate to break Barcelona's dominance. So they've turned to the man who was at the helm in their much publicised Galacticos era, Florentino Perez.
Perez's plan is to bring back the good old days by splashing the cash and going for immediate success. It's a strategy that has been tried before with varying levels of failure. The strategy for buying superstar names and trying to build a team around them is nothing new. What is new is the level of resolve shown by the market to be not bullied into submission. Having paid over the odds for Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo and Benzema, the rest of Europe has been alerted to the Real "revolution" so naturally, prices for the players that Madrid are interested in are going to sky-rocket which has boxed Perez into a corner. And there is nothing Madrid can do about it. Whilst every player may dream of turning out for Bernabeu side, other football clubs don't hold Madrid in the same high regard. Bayern Munich general manager Uli Hoeness has this to say regarding the transfer of Franck Ribery to Madrid "Everybody is speaking about Ribery's transfer. Above all Zidane says 'blah, blah, blah.' It seems a lack of respect to us."
It's easy to be impressed with Madrid's transfer dealings so far this year. Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo are both recent FIFA World Player Of The Year winners (Ronaldo is the reigning Player of The Year). Benzema is a highly regarded talent who has long been linked with leading European clubs. So the players come with some pedigree but on closer inspection, none of those players were hard transfers even if their transfer values suggest otherwise. AC Milan were willing to sell Kaka to Manchester City in January and that would have hurt Kaka. Combine that with Carlo Ancelotti's inevitable departure from the San Siro to replace Hiddink at Chelsea, Milan's decline in Serie A and Europe and the Brazilian's transfer was a mere formality. Ronaldo has never made secret of his desire to join Madrid. And with him having scored over 40 goals in the season before last, winning both Champions League and Premier League, it was always going to be hard to top those achievements. Benzema's only ever played in Ligue 1 for Lyon. A league whose lack of competitiveness is matched only by its absolute lack of entertainment. A move to a better league was always a certainty. None of these players really wanted to stay at their former clubs nor were their clubs particularly committed to keeping them. Madrid have been blinded by the ease of these marque signings. The footballing signings are prove far tougher.
And with that we come to the point... those of you who follow the internets may be familiar with Real's pursuit of Liverpool's Xabi Alonso. You also might be privy to the fact that Xabi Alonso wants to leave Liverpool because of the fall-out between himself and Liverpool manager, Rafa Benitez. This really should be an easy transfer to close out then and yet it still has not. The problem is Real's arrogance. Perez has made numerous reference to investment footballers (Kaka, Ronaldo) and cost footballers (Alonso) and while he values the former highly, he has exhibited considerable contempt for the far more valuable latter. Star players are great and Perez's fascination with them is understandable but no team can succeed without "cost" footballers. You would have thought Perez would have learnt from the last time how big name players (especially at Madrid where they are treated like royalty) have an alarmingly laissez-faire attitude to graft. But Perez is not a man who you would associate with (good) reasoning.
Unfortunately for him, Rafa Benitez is famously stubborn. This is man whose zonal marking system has been subjected to ridicule by virtually everyone in the game and he never once budged from his stance. He seems to have taken a similar line over Madrid's pursuit of the Liverpool supporter's player of the year. Rumours have emerged in recent weeks that Alonso had submitted a transfer request but this is denied by Alonso's representatives and even if it were true, it's unlikely that a request to leave Anfield would change Liverpool's valuation of the midfielder. Benitez would be happy to keep the fan favourite which would give a massive boost to his outfit's title challenge. He's also equally resigned to selling him but only if the price is right. Either way, he wins.
Liverpool are not alone in their battle to keep their important players from joining Madrid. Valencia's David Villa and Bayern Munich's Franck Ribery have also been linked with the Spanish team but so far, neither player's team appear willing to be bullied into a cut-price by Madrid. By going public with their intentions and brazenly throwing his wealth around, Perez has opened himself to being held ransom over player prices. Liverpool were prepared to sell Alonso to Juventus for almost half of the fee they're quoting Madrid. Having thrashed Madrid 5-0 over two legs in last season's Champions League knock-out stages, Liverpool are well within their rights to demand more for a player who will be joining a European rival. Bayern Munich haven't been quite the European force they once were but if Frenchman Ribery can find consistent form, they would be targeting a return to battling for European glory. They too are reluctant to bow to pressure from the Bernabeu team.
Throughout the summer Madrid have used all their usual tricks to try and prise their targets but so far none have worked. With the Spanish season not kicking off until late August, Madrid are willing to play the waiting game but it's unlikely any deals will be struck at the current prices. Whatever happens, they'll be finding out that revolution is quite an expensive business. It's a sentiment Manchester City can share.
*Blog post by BFF member Jericho
Having suffered the shame of of watching arch-rivals Barcelona sweep all before their path (including a famous 2-6 reverse at the Bernabeu) to win a historic treble of the Champions League, La Liga and King's Cup and win plaudits for the football they played in doing so, Real Madrid are desperate to break Barcelona's dominance. So they've turned to the man who was at the helm in their much publicised Galacticos era, Florentino Perez.
Perez's plan is to bring back the good old days by splashing the cash and going for immediate success. It's a strategy that has been tried before with varying levels of failure. The strategy for buying superstar names and trying to build a team around them is nothing new. What is new is the level of resolve shown by the market to be not bullied into submission. Having paid over the odds for Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo and Benzema, the rest of Europe has been alerted to the Real "revolution" so naturally, prices for the players that Madrid are interested in are going to sky-rocket which has boxed Perez into a corner. And there is nothing Madrid can do about it. Whilst every player may dream of turning out for Bernabeu side, other football clubs don't hold Madrid in the same high regard. Bayern Munich general manager Uli Hoeness has this to say regarding the transfer of Franck Ribery to Madrid "Everybody is speaking about Ribery's transfer. Above all Zidane says 'blah, blah, blah.' It seems a lack of respect to us."
It's easy to be impressed with Madrid's transfer dealings so far this year. Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo are both recent FIFA World Player Of The Year winners (Ronaldo is the reigning Player of The Year). Benzema is a highly regarded talent who has long been linked with leading European clubs. So the players come with some pedigree but on closer inspection, none of those players were hard transfers even if their transfer values suggest otherwise. AC Milan were willing to sell Kaka to Manchester City in January and that would have hurt Kaka. Combine that with Carlo Ancelotti's inevitable departure from the San Siro to replace Hiddink at Chelsea, Milan's decline in Serie A and Europe and the Brazilian's transfer was a mere formality. Ronaldo has never made secret of his desire to join Madrid. And with him having scored over 40 goals in the season before last, winning both Champions League and Premier League, it was always going to be hard to top those achievements. Benzema's only ever played in Ligue 1 for Lyon. A league whose lack of competitiveness is matched only by its absolute lack of entertainment. A move to a better league was always a certainty. None of these players really wanted to stay at their former clubs nor were their clubs particularly committed to keeping them. Madrid have been blinded by the ease of these marque signings. The footballing signings are prove far tougher.
And with that we come to the point... those of you who follow the internets may be familiar with Real's pursuit of Liverpool's Xabi Alonso. You also might be privy to the fact that Xabi Alonso wants to leave Liverpool because of the fall-out between himself and Liverpool manager, Rafa Benitez. This really should be an easy transfer to close out then and yet it still has not. The problem is Real's arrogance. Perez has made numerous reference to investment footballers (Kaka, Ronaldo) and cost footballers (Alonso) and while he values the former highly, he has exhibited considerable contempt for the far more valuable latter. Star players are great and Perez's fascination with them is understandable but no team can succeed without "cost" footballers. You would have thought Perez would have learnt from the last time how big name players (especially at Madrid where they are treated like royalty) have an alarmingly laissez-faire attitude to graft. But Perez is not a man who you would associate with (good) reasoning.
Unfortunately for him, Rafa Benitez is famously stubborn. This is man whose zonal marking system has been subjected to ridicule by virtually everyone in the game and he never once budged from his stance. He seems to have taken a similar line over Madrid's pursuit of the Liverpool supporter's player of the year. Rumours have emerged in recent weeks that Alonso had submitted a transfer request but this is denied by Alonso's representatives and even if it were true, it's unlikely that a request to leave Anfield would change Liverpool's valuation of the midfielder. Benitez would be happy to keep the fan favourite which would give a massive boost to his outfit's title challenge. He's also equally resigned to selling him but only if the price is right. Either way, he wins.
Liverpool are not alone in their battle to keep their important players from joining Madrid. Valencia's David Villa and Bayern Munich's Franck Ribery have also been linked with the Spanish team but so far, neither player's team appear willing to be bullied into a cut-price by Madrid. By going public with their intentions and brazenly throwing his wealth around, Perez has opened himself to being held ransom over player prices. Liverpool were prepared to sell Alonso to Juventus for almost half of the fee they're quoting Madrid. Having thrashed Madrid 5-0 over two legs in last season's Champions League knock-out stages, Liverpool are well within their rights to demand more for a player who will be joining a European rival. Bayern Munich haven't been quite the European force they once were but if Frenchman Ribery can find consistent form, they would be targeting a return to battling for European glory. They too are reluctant to bow to pressure from the Bernabeu team.
Throughout the summer Madrid have used all their usual tricks to try and prise their targets but so far none have worked. With the Spanish season not kicking off until late August, Madrid are willing to play the waiting game but it's unlikely any deals will be struck at the current prices. Whatever happens, they'll be finding out that revolution is quite an expensive business. It's a sentiment Manchester City can share.
*Blog post by BFF member Jericho
Saturday, 11 July 2009
Tour de Farce/Force?
Although the quirky play on words never fails any budding journalist, it curiously leaves me persistently questioning the credibility of what has become the world’s greatest stage race. Before going any further, I’d like to stress that this is in no way an attempt to be controversial. Put it more down to a novice cycling fan finding himself honestly stumped.
Farce
It is often proclaimed that such a grand race has come to epitomise everything admirable about human endeavour. Indeed, extensive publications have sought to explain the phenomenon that is the race. Even so, there is also an argument to be made of its ascent to represent an uglier, darker side of those who have devoted their lives to the race, contradicting everything that Destrange and Lefévre set out to prove.
There is no secret as to what it is that has often mired this great pursuit. Whilst the majority of sports have forever combated issues such as gamesmanship, prejudice, and financial irregularities, one problem has become inextricably linked with professional cycling: performance enhancing drugs. Not that this is breaking news. A good proportion of cycling fans will remember questionable practises of this form for as long as they have lavishing their adulation upon it. Even Tom Simpson’s shock death - one of cycling’s most traumatic events - is still accompanied by the regaling of stories about amphetamines being found on the deceased cyclist shortly after his collapse on Ventoux, although it was evident that a number of other factors exacerbated the cyclist‘s tragic demise. It is for exactly this reason, that such tales can still infiltrate the Tour‘s abundant history, that have conspired to seemingly forever bring the sport into disrepute. Naturally, if drugs are a blight on the sport, it is safe to assume that the pinnacle of the sport has its share of the problematic professionals.
It is in recent times that such questionable practises have seemingly robbed the race of all its integrity, more so since anti-doping authorities expand their means to bring PED users to the fore. Issue after issue has presented itself to the flustered organisers of the race, rarely looking like abating. Although the current race has yet to expose its first over-zealous cheat (I write this relatively early on), recent years don’t appear to have done the Tour any favours. After numerous controversies that shrouded all of those who clung onto the wheel of Armstrong, the ensuing years yielded their own share of the innocently guilty. Unthinkably, the maillot jaune winner, Floyd Landis, tested positive for a banned substance - a claim which he still refutes to this day. Then, even more recently, the race had the task of usurping a new wave of cheats, ones who weren’t aware of the creators of CERA having worked in conjunction with the authorities in developing a test that would alert anti-doping authorities to the usage of the blood booster. A winner of two stages, Riccardo Ricco had the venom quickly sucked out of him. Polka-dot winner and third in the GC, Bernard Kohl was captured months after. Winner of both individual Time Trials, Stefan Schumacher, also went that way. Thoroughly depressing stuff. Of course, a number of other riders have kept the anti-doping teams busy over the years, but it would take a dedicated article of its own to condemn these idiots. What’s even more depressing is that these men will still so willing to take a shot (oops).
Force
It would be suitable to advocate ‘Force’ by starting in a similar vein to that of ‘Farce’. Everything good that the authors of publications about the race have provided insight into are fully justified. This is truly a race that transcends all others, propelling itself to a level that others can only aspire to. The way in which millions of cycling fans are annually gripped to their screens, captivated fans packing the side of the road for miles and miles, and generally showing an obsessive enthusiasm every July bear testament to what this race is all about. Cycling fans can confidently boast of its superiority on a number of levels.
Perhaps it’s narrow-minded on my behalf, but the only truly negative aspect of the race I imagined worth questioning is the problem of performance enhancing drugs, as there is surely no sight more disenchanting than a rider being accompanied away by policemen. On the contrary, the pros come with contrasting ease. Although I feel inclined to poor over positive after positive, since the drugs were my sole gripe for a Tour de Farce, I’ll be fair in only citing one admiration, and the one thing that will always attract me to it is, quite simply, the aforementioned human endeavour.
It is with good reason that one of Britain’s best selling cycling magazine proclaims the sport to be the toughest. As convincing as some arguments have been in arguing the case for other sports, I am still yet to be convinced of cycling being equalled by any other spectator event. I could mention Dean Karnazes - a man who runs in one race than what most people will in a lifetime - but he is one unique individual.
So, with cycling being the toughest sport in the world, what does it say of the actual sport’s toughest race? Some may see it fit at this point to politely mention two other famous Grand Tours, the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a Espana. However, there are still circumstances that manage to detract from these, namely the fact that all of cycling’s elite want the famous yellow jersey, whereas Maglia Rosa and Jersey de Oro are an afterthought for some of the biggest names. Riders vying for other classification jerseys also show similar preferences, highlighting the allure of the Tour.
But why? Well, on top of everything else that has come to cultivate such a magnificent race - the sprints, the time trials, the team time trials, breakaways, doing it against the very best, it is the mountains that truly represent what this race is all about, with these being where many of the Tour‘s have been won, thus producing the legends we come to balance our love and dislike for. This is where I’ll leave you to start your own research (Wikipedia!). Whether it be Ventoux, Alp d’Huez, or Col de la Bonette, they are all evocative for every fan of this great race, and definitely personify what “human endeavour” is all about.
To summarise, the way in which millions of cycling fans are annually gripped to their screens, captivated fans packing the side of the roads for miles upon miles, and generally showing that obsessive enthusiasm every July bear testament to what this race is all about. Cycling fans can confidently boast of its superiority to all other races on a number of levels. Whatever at times has made it a farce, despite those people battering at its credibility, the race keeps on transcending all other sports, showing an alarming resilience to all of the deadwood that would have otherwise conspired to deprive us of our privileged summers. Whichever shamefaced cheat is being led from his team’s hotel at this year’s Tour, their antics will never be enough to make this race anything but a Force.
P.S. on the drugs front, as “depressing” as it is to me, I share the sentiments of many cycling fans who, whilst exasperated by the continuous exposure of cheats, are elated with what they perceive to be the authorities finally getting a grip on this sport, as the outing of CERA cheats has demonstrated.
Blog Post by BFF member JimmyMc
Farce
It is often proclaimed that such a grand race has come to epitomise everything admirable about human endeavour. Indeed, extensive publications have sought to explain the phenomenon that is the race. Even so, there is also an argument to be made of its ascent to represent an uglier, darker side of those who have devoted their lives to the race, contradicting everything that Destrange and Lefévre set out to prove.
There is no secret as to what it is that has often mired this great pursuit. Whilst the majority of sports have forever combated issues such as gamesmanship, prejudice, and financial irregularities, one problem has become inextricably linked with professional cycling: performance enhancing drugs. Not that this is breaking news. A good proportion of cycling fans will remember questionable practises of this form for as long as they have lavishing their adulation upon it. Even Tom Simpson’s shock death - one of cycling’s most traumatic events - is still accompanied by the regaling of stories about amphetamines being found on the deceased cyclist shortly after his collapse on Ventoux, although it was evident that a number of other factors exacerbated the cyclist‘s tragic demise. It is for exactly this reason, that such tales can still infiltrate the Tour‘s abundant history, that have conspired to seemingly forever bring the sport into disrepute. Naturally, if drugs are a blight on the sport, it is safe to assume that the pinnacle of the sport has its share of the problematic professionals.
It is in recent times that such questionable practises have seemingly robbed the race of all its integrity, more so since anti-doping authorities expand their means to bring PED users to the fore. Issue after issue has presented itself to the flustered organisers of the race, rarely looking like abating. Although the current race has yet to expose its first over-zealous cheat (I write this relatively early on), recent years don’t appear to have done the Tour any favours. After numerous controversies that shrouded all of those who clung onto the wheel of Armstrong, the ensuing years yielded their own share of the innocently guilty. Unthinkably, the maillot jaune winner, Floyd Landis, tested positive for a banned substance - a claim which he still refutes to this day. Then, even more recently, the race had the task of usurping a new wave of cheats, ones who weren’t aware of the creators of CERA having worked in conjunction with the authorities in developing a test that would alert anti-doping authorities to the usage of the blood booster. A winner of two stages, Riccardo Ricco had the venom quickly sucked out of him. Polka-dot winner and third in the GC, Bernard Kohl was captured months after. Winner of both individual Time Trials, Stefan Schumacher, also went that way. Thoroughly depressing stuff. Of course, a number of other riders have kept the anti-doping teams busy over the years, but it would take a dedicated article of its own to condemn these idiots. What’s even more depressing is that these men will still so willing to take a shot (oops).
Force
It would be suitable to advocate ‘Force’ by starting in a similar vein to that of ‘Farce’. Everything good that the authors of publications about the race have provided insight into are fully justified. This is truly a race that transcends all others, propelling itself to a level that others can only aspire to. The way in which millions of cycling fans are annually gripped to their screens, captivated fans packing the side of the road for miles and miles, and generally showing an obsessive enthusiasm every July bear testament to what this race is all about. Cycling fans can confidently boast of its superiority on a number of levels.
Perhaps it’s narrow-minded on my behalf, but the only truly negative aspect of the race I imagined worth questioning is the problem of performance enhancing drugs, as there is surely no sight more disenchanting than a rider being accompanied away by policemen. On the contrary, the pros come with contrasting ease. Although I feel inclined to poor over positive after positive, since the drugs were my sole gripe for a Tour de Farce, I’ll be fair in only citing one admiration, and the one thing that will always attract me to it is, quite simply, the aforementioned human endeavour.
It is with good reason that one of Britain’s best selling cycling magazine proclaims the sport to be the toughest. As convincing as some arguments have been in arguing the case for other sports, I am still yet to be convinced of cycling being equalled by any other spectator event. I could mention Dean Karnazes - a man who runs in one race than what most people will in a lifetime - but he is one unique individual.
So, with cycling being the toughest sport in the world, what does it say of the actual sport’s toughest race? Some may see it fit at this point to politely mention two other famous Grand Tours, the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a Espana. However, there are still circumstances that manage to detract from these, namely the fact that all of cycling’s elite want the famous yellow jersey, whereas Maglia Rosa and Jersey de Oro are an afterthought for some of the biggest names. Riders vying for other classification jerseys also show similar preferences, highlighting the allure of the Tour.
But why? Well, on top of everything else that has come to cultivate such a magnificent race - the sprints, the time trials, the team time trials, breakaways, doing it against the very best, it is the mountains that truly represent what this race is all about, with these being where many of the Tour‘s have been won, thus producing the legends we come to balance our love and dislike for. This is where I’ll leave you to start your own research (Wikipedia!). Whether it be Ventoux, Alp d’Huez, or Col de la Bonette, they are all evocative for every fan of this great race, and definitely personify what “human endeavour” is all about.
To summarise, the way in which millions of cycling fans are annually gripped to their screens, captivated fans packing the side of the roads for miles upon miles, and generally showing that obsessive enthusiasm every July bear testament to what this race is all about. Cycling fans can confidently boast of its superiority to all other races on a number of levels. Whatever at times has made it a farce, despite those people battering at its credibility, the race keeps on transcending all other sports, showing an alarming resilience to all of the deadwood that would have otherwise conspired to deprive us of our privileged summers. Whichever shamefaced cheat is being led from his team’s hotel at this year’s Tour, their antics will never be enough to make this race anything but a Force.
P.S. on the drugs front, as “depressing” as it is to me, I share the sentiments of many cycling fans who, whilst exasperated by the continuous exposure of cheats, are elated with what they perceive to be the authorities finally getting a grip on this sport, as the outing of CERA cheats has demonstrated.
Blog Post by BFF member JimmyMc
Thursday, 9 July 2009
The Real Deal?
They say that money can't buy you love. That's true. But can money buy the Champions League?
Well, over the next 10 months, we're going to find out, as that's what Real Madrid are looking to do this season.
The Galactico Era Mark II started off when Real - under the presidency of Florentino Perez - managed to do what Manchester City had failed to do and tempted Kaka away from AC Milan. Funny how it was going to take City the best part of £100m to get him in, but £56m from Madrid was enough to get a deal done.
And then the big one. It had been talked about for years, but finally Madrid got their mitts on Cristiano Ronaldo. £80m was the fee for the Manchester United man, and who can blame them for cashing in at that price? We'll soon find out if the man from Portugal was irreplaceable for United, but when that sort of cash is being bandied about, then it's time to sell.
What might have been interesting would have been to see whether United would have used a chunk of that cash to try and snare Kaka, but they did soon identify that they wanted to spend some of it on Lyon's Karim Benzema... But Madrid had other ideas and got in first.
Raul Albiol completes the first wave of signings of the second Perez era, but there are sure to be more to follow.
It would be interesting to know if the feeling of Real trying to buy success is akin to the reaction your average fan gives Manchester City, but what has to be remembered is that when all the previous Galacticos were in situe at the Bernabeu, they didn't win the title. Or the Champions League.
They're going to be a hell of a team to watch next year, and the attacking talent just flows throughout the side... It just remains to be seen whether they will be able to make themselves a winning team.
Well, over the next 10 months, we're going to find out, as that's what Real Madrid are looking to do this season.
The Galactico Era Mark II started off when Real - under the presidency of Florentino Perez - managed to do what Manchester City had failed to do and tempted Kaka away from AC Milan. Funny how it was going to take City the best part of £100m to get him in, but £56m from Madrid was enough to get a deal done.
And then the big one. It had been talked about for years, but finally Madrid got their mitts on Cristiano Ronaldo. £80m was the fee for the Manchester United man, and who can blame them for cashing in at that price? We'll soon find out if the man from Portugal was irreplaceable for United, but when that sort of cash is being bandied about, then it's time to sell.
What might have been interesting would have been to see whether United would have used a chunk of that cash to try and snare Kaka, but they did soon identify that they wanted to spend some of it on Lyon's Karim Benzema... But Madrid had other ideas and got in first.
Raul Albiol completes the first wave of signings of the second Perez era, but there are sure to be more to follow.
It would be interesting to know if the feeling of Real trying to buy success is akin to the reaction your average fan gives Manchester City, but what has to be remembered is that when all the previous Galacticos were in situe at the Bernabeu, they didn't win the title. Or the Champions League.
They're going to be a hell of a team to watch next year, and the attacking talent just flows throughout the side... It just remains to be seen whether they will be able to make themselves a winning team.
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