Cristiano Ronaldo is heading to Real Madrid (well, not yet, but it's inevitable now).
The longest-running rumor in European soccer has finally closer to become reality after Manchester United announced it was agreeing to let Ronaldo negotiate with Real Madrid after receiving an £80 million ($121 million) bid for the Portuguese star. The transfer, expected to be completed later this month, will break the transfer record set just days ago by Ronaldo's soon-to-be teammate Kaka.
WOW.
You had to know the long-discussed transfer would eventually happen, but few could have anticipated that Real Madrid would land Ronaldo AND Kaka, arguably two of the top three players in the world.
What now? United has a boat-load of money and a serious void to fill.
The club has been linked to everyone from Karim Benzema to Franck Ribery. No matter who United buys this summer, it will be hard-pressed to replace Ronaldo's goal-scoring prowess and dynamic attacking qualities.
As for Real Madrid, the shopping spree is not over. The club is said to be targeting David Villa as well as some other complementary parts for a reconstructed squad that has to now be considered capable of unseating defending La Liga and Champions League titleholders FC Barcelona.
What do you think of this transfer? Think Real Madrid is crazy for spending so much money on two players? Do you see this version of Los Galacticos winning the titles that the Zidane-Beckham-Ronaldo edition couldn't? Who do you think Manchester United will bring in with all that Ronaldo money?
Share your thoughts below.
A lot of these comments lead me to believe that a lot of you don’t watch Real Madrid.
While Real Madrid comes first for me, Man U is a close second and I watch all of the games both teams play. To think that a team can lose a player like Ronaldo and fill the void with current players is laughable. Anyone who watches soccer knows that one player can make a gigantic difference for a team. Man U will still be a good team, but they are nothing like a lock to win the EPL next year. I cannot think of a single player who can replace Ronaldo right now. I like guys like Nani and Anderson and think they will be good players in the future, but let’s be reasonable. Park is an absolute joke and should be packaged with Wes Brown in a trade (I think fair value would be Brown and Park for a bag of sausages and a virus).
Lest the revisionists win, some of you might want to double-check your facts about what the “Galacticos” did and did not do. Real won the CL with Zidane, who is by most accounts the person who ushered in the Galacticos era. Vicente del Bosque won plenty of hardware. Beckham came along after Figo and Ronaldo and marked the end of the success (although he did win the league with Real Madrid in his final season).
Those of you saying that Real needs to get some defensive help are dead-on. I’ve been saying it for some time on this site. But I still think they are going to be a phenomenal team next year, one that everyone is going to want to watch. Should be incredibly entertaining.
Real should looking forward to buy some best defender now,just like terry,ferdinand,pique.
————–Raul—David Villa——–
——————–Kaka——————-
Robben——————————Ronaldo
——————Sneijder——————-
Drenthe—–Metzelder—–Cannavaro—Ramos
——————-Casillas—————-
Martin, GREAT POINT! Sir Alex kept him on a short leash and made him (as much as he could anyway) play within the team concept. At Real, I’m sure he will be encouraged to be the showboating egomaniac he is because it will sell shirts and tickets. I definitely agree he’s going to start pulling out more tricks, dancing, etc and it will lead to problems with the team. Especially if they go through a rough patch or find themselves behind Barca by a large amount in the table. Either way, it will be interesting to see. I think Real OVERpaid for both KaKa and Ronaldo.
What is Sir Alex shocks everyone and brings back Beckham to take the No. 7 shirt haha. Not going to happen but could you imagine it?!
Way too much money for Ronaldo, Man Utd had to sell. I think Madrid will eventually live to regret the deal. I’m not saying Ronaldo will flop but he wont live up to that deal.
Dont get hit in the vagina on the way out Ronaldo.
Good riddance.
I bet CR7 has peaked. Fergie kept a tight reign on his antics and got the best out of him. Without the short leash, I see more dancing on the ball, more diving, more whining, and less production than what he showed for ManU. I just don’t see that group gelling together to make a strong “unit” like what you see at Barca. Sure, they’ll have their moments when it all clicks, but I just don’t see them being a juggernaut that wins 5 trophies next season.
oh, and where does Real get the money? the same place Barca gets theirs, insanely favorable tax deals, sponsorships from government owned companies and insane TV deals. what debt they have is in essence, uncollectible (what banker in Madrid is going to get on their bad side?)
and remember, they are a non-profit, so there is no need to make a profit or pay taxes. and their TV deal is worth more, per annum, than ManU and Liverpool combined.
as for the story about having to sell their training grounds. well, they sold a dilapidated facility to the City of Madrid for four times the appraised value and a nice plot of land to build a new one on (paid for also with public money) this was so egregious that the EU opened an investigation into the waste of taxpayer money. for all the talk about how the Big Four are awful, at least they don’t do it with public money.
Rolfe’s grandparents are Dutch, so he could get the same deal on getting a Dutch passport that Cervi got. Only he wont have to wait a year and a half like cervi did.
amazing, isn’t it, that everyone says that Real needs to address defense. you don’t need defense in Spain, if you have offense and possession (hi there, Barca, how are you?) midfield is everything. people said all season that Barca’s defense was suspect, seems like they did ok.
I don’t really care all that much. I’d much rather watch my team then watch a bunch of millionaires try to outspend each other.
Too many people care more about the money then they do about sport.
is that chris rolfe rumor for real?
Posted by: kevin | June 11, 2009 at 12:45 PM
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Considering he would never be able to get a work permit, I highly doubt it.
As a Manchester United loyalist I can only say good riddance. Give me a player with team spirit, like Rooney, Giggs, Scholes, etc. Guys who value their experience with the club and who want to stay their for their entire careers. CR& is no loyalist, only an opportunist.
If you’re not a Manc, you’re a wank. Ronnie, you’re a wank!
Glory, Glory, Red Devils!