Legend has it that on one of the several occasions that Real Madrid was wooing Arsène Wenger in the hope of persuading him to become the team’s new coach, he visited the Bernabéu to meet with senior club officials. After the meeting, as the unimpressed Arsenal boss drove away from the stadium, he said to his translator: “Real Madrid thinks it’s a big club, but it behaves like a small one.” When Real crashed out of the Champions League at the last-16 stage after drawing 1-1 against Lyon at the Bernabéu, the gap between the club’s lofty ambitions and reality was plain for all to see. This year, of all years, was when the nine-time European champions were supposed to return to the top of the … [Read more...] about What now for Real Madrid’s €250-million flops?
football
La Roja steals France’s crown of dominance
Not even a partial strike by Spanish state broadcaster RTVE could prevent the latest triumph for Spain's national football team from being seen by the masses - it eventually proved to be the most-watched game in the station's history. The 2-0 win against France in Paris underlined the notion that there seems to be little that can stop Vicente del Bosque's La Roja at the moment. That said, an anaemic France offered very little to recommend Raymond Domenech's tenure at the helm of a badly listing team that was comprehensively sunk by a nation that had not won on French turf since 1968. Luis Aragonés found the net that day in a 3-1 win, and Del Bosque's predecessor left the incumbent a group of … [Read more...] about La Roja steals France’s crown of dominance
Laporta: first we take Barcelona
What do you do after making one of the world’s most successful football clubs even more successful? If you’re outgoing Barcelona president Joan Laporta, you think about going into politics. Catalan politics. Bound by the football club’s two-terms-only rule, the 47-year-old will be out of a job by June 30, by which time Barcelona’s 100,000 members must elect a new president. Press reports suggest that Laporta will announce his intention to run in the regional elections due in Catalonia this autumn. Over the last year, his political ambitions have gradually taken shape. He briefly flirted with the two main nationalist groupings, the Catalan Republican Left (ERC), and the conservative … [Read more...] about Laporta: first we take Barcelona
The red-and-white underdog roars
It’s not easy being an Atlético Madrid fan. There’s the administrative and boardroom chaos, the unbalanced books and the revolving door of coaches, each hailed as a saviour before being dismissed as a false prophet. There are the financial scandals from the years when Jesús Gil was president, leading to his arrest in 2000 for embezzling his own club. And then there is the ultra hooligan group, among the most violent and xenophobic fans in Europe. And that’s before you get to the football itself. Atlético has one of Spain’s most impressive trophy cabinets: nine league titles, nine Copa del Rey titles and the European Cup-Winners’ Cup. This is a European giant, albeit one which has been … [Read more...] about The red-and-white underdog roars
Halftime for Real Madrid’s neo-Galácticos
What do you buy with €250 million? If you’re Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez, you acquire a handful of the world’s most highly valued football players in a bid to create the best team on the planet. After his uncontested election as club president last summer, Pérez went shopping for a gaggle of superstars. Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaká, Xabi Alonso and Karim Benzema were the biggest signings – major talents who had established themselves in the English, Italian or French leagues with style and goals. Six months on from the euphoria (at least in Madrid) surrounding Pérez’s arrival and consequent recession-defying splash-out, it’s a good time to take stock and gauge the success of … [Read more...] about Halftime for Real Madrid’s neo-Galácticos