By Michel Pierre Louis
Zinedine Zidane, Luis Figo, Ronaldo, David Beckham, that was then; C. Ronaldo, Gareth Bale, Luka Modric, Karim Benzema, this is now. If there is one constant about Florentino Perez as the president of Real Madrid, it is his passion to assemble world class players, for world class fees, to wear the famed madridista jersey.
His latest acquisition, Gareth Frank Bale, joined the club for a whopping $132 million, six year deal. (Surpassing C. Ronaldo’s previous world record for most expensive player). Arguably one of the most sought after players in recent memory, alongside Neymar (FC Barcelona), Bale is an interesting player. The 24 years old Welsh, previously played for Tottenham Hotspur (2007-2013), and in 146 appearances, scored 42 goals; for the Welsh national side, in 41 appearances he netted 11 times. (Combined average of more or less 1 goal every 4 appearances.) While these numbers might be considered average at best by some, the hype surrounding his talent and potential has been phenomenal; remains to be seen how he performs with the big names he’ll be joining.
Although some stars have moved on from the current Madrid squad (Ozil – Arsenal, Kaka – Milan), Bale will be playing alongside the likes of world player of the year C. Ronaldo, World cup champion Alonso; to name a few.The star studded squad will be expected to live up to the spending and bring trophies to the Spanish capital. The last champions league title the club won was during the first galactico era.
During that previous galactico era, the club enjoyed relative success; one key point that was obvious to soccer fans worldwide was the fact that the club focused more on big names from the midfield up; often showing little interest (money wise) in the backline. With a current backline with names such as Pepe, Marcelo, among others it will be interesting to see how the next few “Galacticos 2.0” seasons unfold. One thing is certain though; they will certainly be entertaining to watch.
Home
Store
Contact