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Benzema to join Real, when will the spending end?
France striker Karim Benzema is joining Real Madrid from Olympique Lyon, the Ligue 1 club said on Wednesday on their website.
The 21-year-old Benzema will become Real’s third major signing under returning president Florentino Perez after Brazil’s Kaka and Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo.
When Perez was first in charge at the Bernabeu he set about signing one Galactico each close season. Now he is trying to buy them all in a month.
Where is he getting the money from during this global economic crisis? Furthermore, what damage is the spending spree doing to other clubs?
Manchester United were reportedly interested in Benzema to try to boost their forward line after Ronaldo’s departure.
We really are in unchartered territory here. Will Real still pursue Bayern Munich’s Franck Ribery too?
Are Lyon going to lose it after all?
A few weeks ago, Lyon looked dead set to clinch their seventh consecutive title.
That was until they were held at Nice at the weekend and second-placed Bordeaux managed a 2-1 win at Marseille. Their lead is now just two points.
Lyon next play Nancy and then visit Auxerre, while Bordeaux host Sochaux and travel to Lens in their final game. Four points would be enough to seal the title for Lyon, as they have a much better goal difference.
But what’s striking is how the all-conquering Lyon seem to have lost their confidence a bit, with president Jean-Michel Aulas claiming the whole world is against his team. He’s been complaining because they play a French Cup semi-final against Sedan on Wednesday. Poor chap, his team will only have three days to get ready for the Nancy game. What’s the problem?
On the other hand, Bordeaux coach Laurent Blanc is staying really cool. After one of his youngsters, Pierre Ducasse, won the game with a stoppage time 25-metre strike at Marseille, he said the team which hold their nerve will ultimately prevail.
What do you think? Could we be set for an upset after all?
Julien Pretot, Paris
knowing lyon and with their excellent track record in recent seasons, probably not to be honest. they know what it takes to win titles. having said that, perrin hardly strikes me as the most inspirational leader so you never know. maybe french football could do with a shock to the system. i take it most neutrals are behind bordeaux?
You’re all missing the point here…should teams like AC Milan,Real Madrid, ManU etc. be permitted to buy top stars by running into debt while their competitors avoid excessive financial risk and short-term thinking by sticking to players and debt management they can survive on? Just because Madrid can try and finance their way to trophies doesn’t mean that is a sound policy, either in the short term (as Real’s last few years have proven) or in the long term! Here are the actual consequences of this avariciousness:1)Top stars (and their current owners) suddenly ask incredible sums for the “priviledge” of signing them.2)Great players, a notch below them, who are already in their new teams’s squad suddenly become benchwarmers.3)Youth players see that there is another rung added to the ladder they have to climb to reach the first team.4)Not so great players who have one or two “good”seasons at another club quickly raise their asking price, rendering the market insoluble.5)Well managed teams who honour a wage restriction policy and manage their finances intelligently cannot hope to aquire first quality players at an affordable price, thus, either being forced to go into debt or deeper into debt to get the players, or to hope that their current squads can manage to avoid relegation.6) These “superstars”eschew loyalty and commitment to their team and teammates for an attitude that is all about “them and their greed”.7) These guys are paid about 10 time more than the manager(and about a million times more than the referees) so they may indeed find it hard to follow orders and remain sportsmanlike on the field.Making a great team isn’t simply buying “great”players but developing a youth system that promotes talent and teamwork. A team full of superstars is a team full of gigantic EGOS and a team that rarely has one style of play. It is up to the manager to unify and solidfy the team and each position based on his vision. Sir Alex has that skill, but he also has the sharpness to handle big Egos like Christian Ronaldo, and the like. There is also the question of an irrestible drive to win, which Real has lacked (along with AC Milan, Liverpool and Arsenal)and ManU,Barcelona sand Chelsea still possess.