Nudge nudge, wink wink…I’m off…

article-0-0207dc8400000578-593_468x393Cristiano Ronaldo, the world’s best football player is finally off to Real Madrid for a staggering world record fee of 80 million pounds. This deal dwarfs what Madrid just paid for Kaka and proves the club are willing to invest whatever it takes to recapture their glory years and challenge Barcelona for honors again. 

As a fan of the Premier League I’m gutted. I never thought I would feel so gutted about a player leaving Manchester United as I don’t even support the buggers! I just like to watch the best players play in the best league in the world. Now the two best players in the world (Ronaldo and Messi) are playing in La Liga.

Does this mean the power is shifting away from the Premier League? Is this a sign and should the Premier League be worried? Forget about the diving and the moaning for just a second and think of Manchester United’s Saturday afternoon clashes with Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal, but there’s no Ronaldo. It feels as bad as the day Henry left Arsenal for Barcelona. And let’s face it, Arsenal have still not recovered or won anything since he left. United have seen great players come and go over the years, but this one might be tough to replace.

Everyone is crying about how much Real Madrid have paid for Ronaldo and there’s no doubt those tears are somewhat justified. However, players like Ronaldo, Kaka, Messi and even Beckham are more than just players. They are a brand in themselves. A corporation. A business. And if a business performs well year after year, the value goes up and sometimes another company will come in and make an offer to buy that business for way more than what it was worth to begin with. Was MySpace really worth over $500? Was Facebook worth almost a billion dollars? Probably not, but huge corporations came in and paid the money because in the long-term, the payback from the initial investment is worth so much greater. When you negotiate your contract with a potential employer, you try to get the best deal for you right? Expense account, bonuses, travel, company car and other incentives. It’s all relative as far as I’m concerned.

Ronaldo will payback Madrid in potentially his first season. He will sell shirts, season tickets and merchandise beyond Real Madrid’s dreams. When Beckham went to Real Madrid, their shirt sales went through the roof. Wherever Beckham has gone shirt sales have gone through the roof. And the profile and publicity these top tier players garner for their team is priceless. Yes the wages are crazy. Yes they get paid ridiculous amounts of money and yes it’s tough to justify in today’s economy. But they too have worked hard for their worth. To buy the best you have to be willing to pay top dollar. And if Ronaldo is the world’s best, then surely he is worth the money Real Madrid are investing right? 

Everyone is acting as though teams pay over 80 million pounds for a player everyday. But they don’t. Ronaldo is a special player. These special players don’t come around that often and when they do, teams are willing to pay whatever it takes for their services. I say good luck to the boy. Why not? He’s earned it. He’s worked hard. He gives everything on the pitch. Yes he bitches and moans and cries. But his talent makes you forget about that stuff. And like him or not, you cannot deny his talent. He came from a very humble upbringing in Portugal and his family had nothing. His God given talent has blessed him with riches beyond his dreams. The winker wins again and who wouldn’t want to be in his position…

I belong to Real Madrid…

2123220852_4bbb266060Brazilian superstar Kaka has finally sealed his move to Real Madrid for a world record 62 million pounds. It well eclipses the 40 odd million pounds Madrid paid for Zidane all those years ago.

There’s no doubt Kaka is an amazing footballer with bags and bags of talent. Before Messi and Ronaldo started ruling the school, Kaka was the man at Milan. But in a very difficult financial time for so many people around the world, is it a smart move for Real Madrid to be paying this type of money for one player? On the flip side, if clubs and corporations have the money, why shouldn’t they spend it? Just because our pockets are a little empty, doesn’t mean other people have to stop spending their money does it?

From a team perspective, Real Madrid have landed a player they can rebuild their team around. He’s definitely going to need help, especially if Madrid want to knockout Barcelona in every way next season. Their President Florentino Perez is back at the helm and it’s evident he wants to build another team of Galacticos, just like he did a few years back when he bought Zidane, Beckham and the original Ronaldo!

Who would you buy to help Kaka deliver success to Real Madrid? Do you think Real Madrid can challenge Barcelona next season, even if they don’t buy another huge star?

Viva Barcelona and coach Guardiola…

Italy Soccer Champions League FinalIn 1999 Manchester United capped an incredible season by beating Bayern Munich in the dying seconds of the Champions League Final to secure an amazing treble. Fast forward 10 years and it’s now Barcelona celebrating a treble of trophies as they captured the biggest prize of all in Rome last night. Congratulations on winning the Champions League. Barcelona were simply beautiful.

After the first 10 minutes it seemed United had this game in the bag. Barcelona were nowhere. Then a goal from Eto’o stunned the Red Devils and they never recovered. Messi turned it on like Britney Spears on Grammy night. Xavi and Iniesta ruled the midfield. They were brilliant and my prediction for United to win was wrong, wrong, wrong!

A shout out must go to Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola. What a first season as coach of one of football’s most famous clubs. He was a very successful player for Barca many moons ago. And now he has delivered the treble in his first season. Where does he go from here? Hopefully he’ll experience the same success Sir Alex Ferguson has enjoyed over the last 15 years. He’s a good bloke and there’s no question he has created a great environment for these players in the dressing room. They have a great spirit and the coach should be patted on the back for that.

But after last night’s game, the real debate will begin. Who is the best player in the world? Surely on last night’s display it’s Messi right? Or Is Ronaldo still the best in the world? Who has bragging rights for the 2009-10 season?

Who will lift the Champions League trophy..?

champions_league_trophyThe two sexiest teams in Europe have a hot date in Rome on Wednesday. But who will come out on top? Manchester United? Barcelona? Let’s hope it’s us fans that are the happiest at the end of the game, for this really is an exciting Champions League final and we hope it lives up to every expectation.

This game will also solidify who the best player in the world is for the 2008/09 season. It’s Ronaldo vs Messi. Have you already decided who is the best? Are you waiting for the game to play out before you choose? Who will rise to the occasion and be crowned king of the soccer world? We all know it takes a team to win, but let’s be honest, everyone will be watching the battle between these two talents to see who shines on the big night.

There’s no doubt the talent on display in this game will be too sexy for the pitch. Dimitar Berbatov, Carlos Tevez, Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidic, Wayne Rooney, Samuel Eto’o, Andres Iniesta, Thierry Henry and Yaya Toure can all be match winners for their team. And don’t forget legends like Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes. Let’s hope all of these players can stay injury free for the final.

This is when the summer starts to sizzle in Europe. As fans, we crave moments like this. My money is on the boys of Manchester to do it all over again…

Ba Ba Barcelona…

Spain Soccer La LigaFor Real Madrid, Saturday’s game against Barcelona was more El Miserablo than El Clasico. For a brief second, it looked like both teams could score lots of goals. But in the end, it was the Catalan Kings that had their happy fans singing well into Sunday morning.

Let’s not beat around the corner flag here people..Barcelona gave their rivals an absolute beating. Raul and co. are probably still applying ailment to help ease the pain after the many lashings they received. Barcelona were sensational. Henry’s performance was vintage Arsenal and Messi was sublime and brilliant as usual. But Xavi and Iniesta tore the Real Madrid midfield apart and proved once again why they are two of the best players in the world. They carved- up Diarra, Gago and Robben like a Christmas turkey and slice by slice we devoured their perfect display of beautiful football. I was stuffed at full-time but could have had plenty more if they were willing to serve it up. Wow.

Next is the Champions League semi-final agains Chelsea. Should the Blues be afraid of getting a football whipping on Wednesday? Will their physical strength see them through to the final in Rome? Will Barcelona choke? Can anyone beat them? Soak it up footie fans. This is the beautiful game at it’s beautiful best and we’ll all be watching.