2007-08: Where It Ended
Not many fans, including the most optimistic of Madridistas, would have predicted Real Madrid to saunter to the 2007/08 league title. Granted, their two arch nemeses over the past decade, Barcelona and Valencia, had to endure an unexpected downward spiral, but the capital giants were going through a transitional phase of their own.
Having brought in a new coach – their seventh in five years, including all interim caretakers – and about half a dozen new key players worth over €100 million, Los Merengues were expected to struggle initially to adapt, bond and gel, but instead, the exact opposite happened.
They played some of their most effective football in decades and looked their most assured in defence; two huge factors that contributed to their La Liga triumph. Not only did they successfully defended a league title for the first time in almost 20 years but they did it on a canter.
While their 30th league crown in 2006/07 was wrapped up on the last day in dramatic yet memorable circumstances, their 31st was a straight forward affair. They essentially clinched the title at the back of a sensational first half of the season, helped on by solid run towards the finish line at the tail-end of the campaign.
Leading the table practically from Week Two, Los Merengues chalked up 15 wins in the first 19 league games whilst preserving a 100% home record in that period. Bernd Schuster’s charges were unrivalled at the turn of the year. But as the fixtures (domestic, continental and International) piled up and the suspensions and injuries crept in, the team started to buckle under pressure. The slide, unfortunately, coincided with the start of the Champions League knockout phase and as a result, their hoodoo in the competition continued when they were knocked out by AS Roma in the round of 16.
Seven defeats in ten successive games in all competitions between February and March gave the merengue faithful a real scare as it looked as though the wheels had finally come off their express wagon. It was only because their direct rivals, Barcelona and Villarreal, stumbled at all the right moments that Madrid were let off the hook and allowed to continue unchallenged at the top of the table.
But they did bounce back admirably and finished off the campaign exactly the same way they had started it. Seven wins in their final nine league games saw them bag the Primera Liga throne with three rounds still to spare. And as an icing on the cake, they forced their eternal enemies Barcelona to perform the pasillo at the Bernabéu, just three days after securing the crown at Osasuna.
The cherry on top of the already sweet icing was, ofcourse, the 4-1 win over the Catalans in the game itself. A delectably perfect way to end the season.
Summer Activity
The summer transfer market has been full of controversy for Real Madrid, even more than they would have liked by their own standards. But for once in their recent history, they found themselves on the receiving end of an ugly transfer saga.
Ever since the turn of the century, starting with Luis Figo in 2000, the club have made it a habit to make at least one mega-money signing during the summer, or at least link themselves to one. Despite ushering in a new regime in 2006 and new president Ramón Calderón’s promise to re-assess their transfer policies, it doesn’t look like much has changed. Arrogantly promising Cesc Fàbregas, Kaká or Arjen Robben during the pre-elections, el presidente only managed to deliver the latter a year later.
This year, anyone not living under a rock will be familiar with Madrid’s ludicrous and unrelenting pursuit of Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo throughout the summer. After all the fuss, speculation, counter-offers and rumours, everything came to nought when the Portuguese decided to stay at Old Trafford. But that was the least of El Real’s worries.
The Robinho transfer saga followed suit and soon, the merengues found themselves chugging down a spoonful of their own bitter medicine. They have so far managed to fight off Chelsea’s advances for the Brazilian, but the player is now visibly unsettled at the club and the perfect harmony in the dressing room that has been solidified over the last two years could be rattled.
Calderón’s other promise of allowing the coach full authority to sign whoever he wants has also been broken. Schuster has been pleading for a new striker all summer long and although he has finally been granted access to one, the board’s initial response of ignoring him has fractured their already fragile relationship.
But the serial shopperholics have restrained themselves well this summer in terms of actual spending. They have shopped and bargained wisely instead of throwing money around to get their man, who normally arrives at the club with some existing chronic injury.
They have made only two major signings – one of which has been promptly sent back out on loan. Ezequiel Garay was purchased for just €10 million from Racing Santander but the club agreed to let him stay on at El Sardinero on a one year loan spell. A bizarre decision considering Madrid’s infamously shaky and oft injury-plagued backline.
But the real steal was Rafael van der Vaart. The Dutch playmaker cost only €13 million from Hamburg, a very tiny sum for a talented and young player and best of all, there wasn’t any of the usual media frenzy or hullabaloo that accompanied his arrival.
The club also exercised the option to buy back former canteranos, Rubén de la Red from Getafe and Javi García from Osasuna, although it remains to be seen just exactly how much playing time the pair will see with the first team.
As far as the football goes, their form has been rather indifferent in the pre-season campaign, looking particularly unconvincing in defence. They have failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their six games, including the 3-2 loss at Valencia in the first leg of the Supercopa.
In all fairness, Schuster had to rely on a makeshift defence and an experimental midfield throughout the course the pre-season program but that is hardly good excuse to calm any apprehension the fans might have. Rather, it only serves to highlight how underdeveloped the “second” string side is.
Players such as Salgado, Metzelder, Drenthe, de la Red, Higuaín and Saviola are all capable of putting in Man of the Match performances on their day, but whether or not they can perform consistently for even two to three games in a row is another matter altogether.
Analysis & Prognosis
Calderón claims that this is a season where Real Madrid consolidate their position and status in La Liga and continue to build on what they had last term. The lack of new signings can be viewed in two ways.
The positive note is that for the first time in a very long while, the club will have, by and large, the same squad of core players who played together last season. In theory, this should bring continuity to the team and fluidity to their playing style.
But on the flip side, all their main rivals from Barcelona to Atlético Madrid to Villarreal have strengthened their squad significantly. Competition increases every year and even though the blancos already have a remarkably solid group of first team players, the lack of reinforcements could see them run the risk of being left behind.
As usual, winning all three major titles remain the paramount objective for the ‘White House’. Doing well domestically is a must for the 31-time La Liga champions but you just get the sense that the Champions League has now become the prime obsession.
Having failed to progress anywhere near the semi-final stage in the last five seasons, the club are eager to make sure they do not stall at ‘Number 9’ on another 30 year gap, just like how they were stranded at their ‘Sixth’ for over three decades.
The players are also anxious to break the jinx and they are desperately determined to return the name ‘Real Madrid’ to the very pinnacle of European football. They certainly have the talent in the team to do it, on paper at least.
But if last season has taught us anything, the lack of depth in the squad at any one precise moment could so easily undo an entire campaign’s hopes and dreams.
As a good case in point, against Roma in the Champions League knockout clash, Madrid were deprived of the services of Robinho and Ruud van Nistelrooy in each of the legs. Wesley Sneijder went missing in both due to his own injury while several players were hideously out of form, including Guti and Julio Baptista, and they just did not have enough firepower in their back-up squadron to act as temporary cover.
Their failure – or refusal – to splash the cash and bolster their squad this campaign could be their Achilles heel once again in Europe and as mentioned before, their pre-season performances have already exposed this weakness. Unless the club hierarchy make the unthinkable decision to forego their La Liga challenge and focus solely on Europe, it will be difficult to see them push and succeed on both fronts.
But Madrid being Madrid, should things conspire against them halfway through the season, they can always count on the trusty chequebook to rectify things.
Coach: Bernd Schuster
Stadium: Estadio Santiago Bernabéu (80,400)
2007/08 Position: 1st
2007/08 Record: P-34 W-27 D-4 L-7 GF-84 GA-36 Pts-85
Players In: Ezequiel Garay (Racing Santander), Javi García (Osasuna), Rubén de la Red (Getafe), Rafael van der Vaart (Hamburg)
Players Out: Ezequiel Garay (Racing Santander - on loan), Javier Balboa (Benfica), Esteban Granero (Getafe), Roberto Soldado (Getafe), Julio Baptista (AS Roma), Pablo García (PAOK)
Possible Line-Up: Casillas – Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Cannavaro, Heinze/Marcelo – Sneijder/van der Vaart, Gago, Guti, Robinho/Robben – Raúl, van Nistelrooy
Not many fans, including the most optimistic of Madridistas, would have predicted Real Madrid to saunter to the 2007/08 league title. Granted, their two arch nemeses over the past decade, Barcelona and Valencia, had to endure an unexpected downward spiral, but the capital giants were going through a transitional phase of their own.
Having brought in a new coach – their seventh in five years, including all interim caretakers – and about half a dozen new key players worth over €100 million, Los Merengues were expected to struggle initially to adapt, bond and gel, but instead, the exact opposite happened.
They played some of their most effective football in decades and looked their most assured in defence; two huge factors that contributed to their La Liga triumph. Not only did they successfully defended a league title for the first time in almost 20 years but they did it on a canter.
While their 30th league crown in 2006/07 was wrapped up on the last day in dramatic yet memorable circumstances, their 31st was a straight forward affair. They essentially clinched the title at the back of a sensational first half of the season, helped on by solid run towards the finish line at the tail-end of the campaign.
Leading the table practically from Week Two, Los Merengues chalked up 15 wins in the first 19 league games whilst preserving a 100% home record in that period. Bernd Schuster’s charges were unrivalled at the turn of the year. But as the fixtures (domestic, continental and International) piled up and the suspensions and injuries crept in, the team started to buckle under pressure. The slide, unfortunately, coincided with the start of the Champions League knockout phase and as a result, their hoodoo in the competition continued when they were knocked out by AS Roma in the round of 16.
Seven defeats in ten successive games in all competitions between February and March gave the merengue faithful a real scare as it looked as though the wheels had finally come off their express wagon. It was only because their direct rivals, Barcelona and Villarreal, stumbled at all the right moments that Madrid were let off the hook and allowed to continue unchallenged at the top of the table.
But they did bounce back admirably and finished off the campaign exactly the same way they had started it. Seven wins in their final nine league games saw them bag the Primera Liga throne with three rounds still to spare. And as an icing on the cake, they forced their eternal enemies Barcelona to perform the pasillo at the Bernabéu, just three days after securing the crown at Osasuna.
The cherry on top of the already sweet icing was, ofcourse, the 4-1 win over the Catalans in the game itself. A delectably perfect way to end the season.
Summer Activity
The summer transfer market has been full of controversy for Real Madrid, even more than they would have liked by their own standards. But for once in their recent history, they found themselves on the receiving end of an ugly transfer saga.
Ever since the turn of the century, starting with Luis Figo in 2000, the club have made it a habit to make at least one mega-money signing during the summer, or at least link themselves to one. Despite ushering in a new regime in 2006 and new president Ramón Calderón’s promise to re-assess their transfer policies, it doesn’t look like much has changed. Arrogantly promising Cesc Fàbregas, Kaká or Arjen Robben during the pre-elections, el presidente only managed to deliver the latter a year later.
This year, anyone not living under a rock will be familiar with Madrid’s ludicrous and unrelenting pursuit of Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo throughout the summer. After all the fuss, speculation, counter-offers and rumours, everything came to nought when the Portuguese decided to stay at Old Trafford. But that was the least of El Real’s worries.
The Robinho transfer saga followed suit and soon, the merengues found themselves chugging down a spoonful of their own bitter medicine. They have so far managed to fight off Chelsea’s advances for the Brazilian, but the player is now visibly unsettled at the club and the perfect harmony in the dressing room that has been solidified over the last two years could be rattled.
Calderón’s other promise of allowing the coach full authority to sign whoever he wants has also been broken. Schuster has been pleading for a new striker all summer long and although he has finally been granted access to one, the board’s initial response of ignoring him has fractured their already fragile relationship.
But the serial shopperholics have restrained themselves well this summer in terms of actual spending. They have shopped and bargained wisely instead of throwing money around to get their man, who normally arrives at the club with some existing chronic injury.
They have made only two major signings – one of which has been promptly sent back out on loan. Ezequiel Garay was purchased for just €10 million from Racing Santander but the club agreed to let him stay on at El Sardinero on a one year loan spell. A bizarre decision considering Madrid’s infamously shaky and oft injury-plagued backline.
But the real steal was Rafael van der Vaart. The Dutch playmaker cost only €13 million from Hamburg, a very tiny sum for a talented and young player and best of all, there wasn’t any of the usual media frenzy or hullabaloo that accompanied his arrival.
The club also exercised the option to buy back former canteranos, Rubén de la Red from Getafe and Javi García from Osasuna, although it remains to be seen just exactly how much playing time the pair will see with the first team.
As far as the football goes, their form has been rather indifferent in the pre-season campaign, looking particularly unconvincing in defence. They have failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their six games, including the 3-2 loss at Valencia in the first leg of the Supercopa.
In all fairness, Schuster had to rely on a makeshift defence and an experimental midfield throughout the course the pre-season program but that is hardly good excuse to calm any apprehension the fans might have. Rather, it only serves to highlight how underdeveloped the “second” string side is.
Players such as Salgado, Metzelder, Drenthe, de la Red, Higuaín and Saviola are all capable of putting in Man of the Match performances on their day, but whether or not they can perform consistently for even two to three games in a row is another matter altogether.
Analysis & Prognosis
Calderón claims that this is a season where Real Madrid consolidate their position and status in La Liga and continue to build on what they had last term. The lack of new signings can be viewed in two ways.
The positive note is that for the first time in a very long while, the club will have, by and large, the same squad of core players who played together last season. In theory, this should bring continuity to the team and fluidity to their playing style.
But on the flip side, all their main rivals from Barcelona to Atlético Madrid to Villarreal have strengthened their squad significantly. Competition increases every year and even though the blancos already have a remarkably solid group of first team players, the lack of reinforcements could see them run the risk of being left behind.
As usual, winning all three major titles remain the paramount objective for the ‘White House’. Doing well domestically is a must for the 31-time La Liga champions but you just get the sense that the Champions League has now become the prime obsession.
Having failed to progress anywhere near the semi-final stage in the last five seasons, the club are eager to make sure they do not stall at ‘Number 9’ on another 30 year gap, just like how they were stranded at their ‘Sixth’ for over three decades.
The players are also anxious to break the jinx and they are desperately determined to return the name ‘Real Madrid’ to the very pinnacle of European football. They certainly have the talent in the team to do it, on paper at least.
But if last season has taught us anything, the lack of depth in the squad at any one precise moment could so easily undo an entire campaign’s hopes and dreams.
As a good case in point, against Roma in the Champions League knockout clash, Madrid were deprived of the services of Robinho and Ruud van Nistelrooy in each of the legs. Wesley Sneijder went missing in both due to his own injury while several players were hideously out of form, including Guti and Julio Baptista, and they just did not have enough firepower in their back-up squadron to act as temporary cover.
Their failure – or refusal – to splash the cash and bolster their squad this campaign could be their Achilles heel once again in Europe and as mentioned before, their pre-season performances have already exposed this weakness. Unless the club hierarchy make the unthinkable decision to forego their La Liga challenge and focus solely on Europe, it will be difficult to see them push and succeed on both fronts.
But Madrid being Madrid, should things conspire against them halfway through the season, they can always count on the trusty chequebook to rectify things.
Coach: Bernd Schuster
Stadium: Estadio Santiago Bernabéu (80,400)
2007/08 Position: 1st
2007/08 Record: P-34 W-27 D-4 L-7 GF-84 GA-36 Pts-85
Players In: Ezequiel Garay (Racing Santander), Javi García (Osasuna), Rubén de la Red (Getafe), Rafael van der Vaart (Hamburg)
Players Out: Ezequiel Garay (Racing Santander - on loan), Javier Balboa (Benfica), Esteban Granero (Getafe), Roberto Soldado (Getafe), Julio Baptista (AS Roma), Pablo García (PAOK)
Possible Line-Up: Casillas – Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Cannavaro, Heinze/Marcelo – Sneijder/van der Vaart, Gago, Guti, Robinho/Robben – Raúl, van Nistelrooy
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