Yes, but they had enough quality in the rest of the field and a tactically astute enough manager that they were able to win despite that. Sort of like how we won it with a central defense containing Ivan Campo and Aitor Karanka.
The biggest constant is instability. We've effectively become what Inter was ten years ago - constant managerial and squad changes, plenty of money but little buying power because players don't want to come due to fears of having their careers ruined - and it could be argued that Inter only managed to recover as a result of being effectively gifted the scudetto by the Calciopoli scandal. What's going to save us?
Would it make a difference? He'd still be saddled with the same problem every coach has when they come to Madrid. Instability, too many players needed to play out of their position, a player who has more power and influence than himself who he must find a way to fit in the team, and an insufficient front office. The biggest constant is Raul has been the center piece of the team. For the past five years we've tried to build the team around Raul, which would have made sense when he was the best player in the world in 02', years before that or even a year after that. However now he is no where near what he was. Other teams are built around Messi's, Gerrard's, Cristiano's, Ibrahimovic's, Kaka's, Ribery's, Lampard/Essien's, etc, etc... Our team is built around a legend who is past his prime, can still play decent, but shouldn't have a team built around him. This is our true problem. Once we take him away from being the central figure, from being what we build around... get a crack and build our team around that player.... I feel we will see a true difference. This is my fear. Why should Cristiano want to come? Why should he even want to go through with the agreement... if there is one? Kaka? Ribery? Anybody? Our best bet is hoping Valencia bomb away the rest of their season (which hurts us indirectly ironically, because if Villareal qualify we're definitely in the second tier group) so we can overpay for a Villa and hopefully win a bidding war for a Silva, both of which Valencia don't want to sell to us. Valencia? What would save us is a strong president who puts his foot down, gets rid of all the dead weight, tells Raul to take a backseat and implements a strong building process.
The problem is simply madrid lost its football philosophy. Since Del Bosque left, our swift tiki taka football disappeared. Coaches came, different philosophies were imposed on madrid, fans and cantera players disgrunted, titles disappeared. The only solution would be a spanish old school coach who believes in style as much as efficiency, or a former madridista (just like guardiola) who can play our style again. Players are a secondary issue, coz havin Ronaldo or Villa or even Messi wont bring titles back. Another issue would be the link between the football director and the coach. We should take sevilla as an example. Coach asks for a player in a certain position with certain characteristics, director consults his scouting network, options are discussed with coach, then signing is made. The days where pieces where thrown at a puzzle and expected to fit in perfectly should be over. I just hope that instead of presidents promising players in the next election, presidents promising the return of our football philosophy.
casillas agrees with me - we lack quality to compete: http://www.goal.com/en/news/12/spai...tter-players-for-the-champions-league-iker-ca
From an outsiders point of view - 1. Changing managers every season - which leads to 2. Just don't have the players (the players who were ideal for one manager's style of play may be completely useless for another manager's) The only team that has survived chopping and changing in the manager seat is Chelsea and that's because they had a 300m squad assembled that anyone with a partially functioning brain could manage to a title. Look at Benitez, he would have been fired many times over at Real but they stuck with him, and he has brought them CL success and are nipping at Manutd's heels for the title. You have to give a manager time to build their team, their way. You may not see immediate success in the CL - and that should be expected as you have some ground to make up, but give a manager a chance and let him buy his players. I also agree with the post on the first page that your team has to excel at either Barca's type of gameplay or find a way to outmuscle the English sides. If you want to succeed in the CL playing beautiful attacking football you really need to have an all-star attack like they do, or go for physical dominance - trying to do both won't get you anywhere.
Sure. They'd be unbalanced and much richer. Enough to arguably strengthen their side despite the departure of Ronaldo. Out Ronaldo and in Ribery and possibly De Rossi or a top notch CM.
You guys don't realize a few things, and i am talking in general not just you. Bayern is a top club, with top finances.They don't owe anything to anybody, and have a loaded bank account.To put it like this, they don't need to sell.People talk about Ribery moving clubs as if he would be playing for Aachen (no offence), and it's only a matter of money. I don't like them, but there is some serious lack of respect towards Bayern when the Ribery topic is being brought up. Unless something Citeh'esque from the land of insane transfers happens, Ribery is staying put.
He seems very close to asking for a transfer, thats the only way I see it going down if he were to leave. Think they'd pull a Ronaldo on him and tie his nuts to the club and make him play at a place he doesnt want to play in?
But it is not just about the size of the club. United won the CL and had to fight desperately to keep Ronaldo. They will likely lose him at some time in the near future anyway. If Ribery says he wants to go, then it will be tough for Bayern to keep him. No matter how large of a club Bayern is. And I don't think it is unrealistic to think Ribery might want out if a team like United come calling. Do you?
The way i know Bayern they won't sell him unless they have someone just as good coming in, or can fill enough holes in the roster with that money that it doesn't matter (Citeh'esque amounts of money). He signed a contract and he knows it.Bayern would keep him "against his will". Hargreaves came out and said that he is ready to leave as well, but all that didn't matter, since he stayed another year until Bayern have a plan in mind in order to let him go. All i am saying is, Bayern is run in a fantastic manner.The arrogance of some people that think they'll bend over and succumb to a players demands is ridiculous. Even Werder kept Diego for more years than anybody else thought that they would, and they don't even have the magnitude of Bayern in most aspects. If you feel like taking this even further take it to the Other teams thread, or the transfer thread. My impression of Bayern (and i have a pretty detailed one, trust me), is that they have no one to fear on the business level, no matter what they say or try to make people believe.
i was very sad they drew liverpool, one of the toughest opponents, but i guess it would make the team better when there is a new challenge like liverpool, ya, no disrespect to other teams, but if we drew other teams, probably we would have made it to the q-f, i got some personal views though, i noticed in the 2nd leg match agst liverpool, at anfield, real were simply outmuscled by pool, they were not as fast and strong as compared to pool's players, not agile as them, i think we have to be really tougher and faster physically to play agst english teams, ya, just my thot, the first leg also looks similar to me, outmuscled in terms of speed and roughness, =p, just my thot again, =p
As an impartial observer, my reasons for why Real are failing in the CL: 1. Not enough quality players. Good enough to challenge for La Liga but not for the Champions league 2. The manager needs to make all important football decisions, including final say on who joins the club and who plays. It's well known that certain players at RM get picked even if the manager doesn't particularly fancy them 3. Celebrity chairman and other non-manager/coaches have too much influence over football decisions. Get rid off them. 4. Poor managers. The last top class manager you had was Del Bosque. And you sacked him for being successful. Weird. Get in a top class manager and not just a yes man and things will look a lot brighter. 5. No team will ever propser with Heinze in the team, much less the Portuguese Titus Bramble (Pepe) and old man Cannavaro
You were doing well with your points..after "5. No team will ever propser with Heinze in the team, much less the Portuguese Titus Bramble (Pepe) and old man Cannavaro" they are all garbage . Hell you even spelled prosper wrong... no.5 messed up that post.
You do know that Benitez was trying to sign Heinze before he moved to Real Madrid right? Had it not been for Ferguson blocking the move, Heinze would be at Liverpool right now.
I know, and I'm delighted the move never came off. Rafa has made several bad purchases and Heinze would have been one of them. To be honest, I would probably prefer Heinze to Disaster Dossena though, but not to Aurelio or our very promising young Argentine left back, Insua.
Did not know where else to post this but this is an interesting article http://www.goal.com/en-india/news/1...panish-inquisition-redeeming-la-liga-football