Here is a nice read I found on Bleacher ReportTo all my fellow Madridistas, here is my long but very informative and reasonable look at the direction Real Madrid should take in the summer transfer window.
First and foremost lets look at the players who should move on or be sold in the summer:
1. ADAN - (Iker and Lopez to deputize + to develop should seek 1st team action)
2. ARBELOA - (never was a fan of his game and i know he is a youth product but i just think better attacking/def options for a starter and backup are available)
3. CALLEJON - (really love his love for the club with his finger point celebrations at the madrid badge + he is a cantero but lets face it, he underachieved this year from last year and he is not really the backup right winger we need....btw he is more of a striker/cf so he could be a 4th striker or 3rd if we loan morata out for gametime.
4. CARVALHO - (not what he used to be and in his mid 30's now)
5. ALBIOL AND PEPE - (i thank pepe for all he has done since 2007 but i think his time is running up. He is 30 already and we can see from this seasons performance that he losing his ability and athleticism, granted I know he had ankle surgery. Albiol has been decent but he might look for more game time + offers might come in from other clubs and he doesnt instill confidence in me when he is playing.
6. KAKA - (what more can i say about this amazing player but reaching in age
It makes me so sad to have to include him in this list but I feel we should try to reduce the wage bill and get another younger CAM for the future to rotate with Assist machine Ozil. Hopefully he goes back to milan for 1st team action).
7. HIGUAIN - (he is the better finisher out of the 2 strikers but benzema seems to be the better overall player...... as a madrid fan it would suck to see him leave after the many years of his service but he deserves 1st team action and we need a lethal striker in the air, pace wise, from distance and strong which i believe higuian lacks nowadays compared to before but benzema is not much better at those things either.
8. ESSIEN - chelsea might want him back or he might follow mourinho there. But he has been pretty solid since we got him, so i wouldnt mind him staying as a utility player.
So as we can see, we would then need 3 backup CB, 1 RW, 1 AM, 1 ST, 1 RB and most likely 1 CM/CDM this year/next year. According to the players exiting on my list it should accumalate close to about 80 million euros in return which will help in improving and adding to positions that are needed without breaking the bank in the summer.
Now, lets look at the players who should come to the Bernabeu:
CB - GARAY (he would be cheap as madrid can buy him back for i think less than 10 mil and has improved from his last stint here + he already has la liga experience but of course he would be a backup though but a notch up over albiol/pepe).
CB - INIGO MARTINEZ - (he's spanish and a great young talent that could eventually replace ramos in the future as he is only like 22 or something. He would be fractions of the price of a hummels/marquinhos(whom i would love) but is still a great defender in many aspects. He plays for Real Sociedad if you don't know and will probly only cost about 7-12 mil but its a bargain.)
CB - NACHO - (a youth product and a decent one for that matter, i know he plays a lot at LB/RB but his original position is a CB and he has pretty good ball skills and technical ability for a CB. he is young, pretty good in the air and fast and will learn and develop from ramos and varane. He would be a 5th choice utility defender for now as he can play CB/LB/RB.)
RW - REUS/NAVAS - (WE DO NOT NEED BALE......YET LOL. maybe after ronaldo leaves in 2 years which is a possibilty we could make a run at bale + if tottenham make the UCL this year he probly wont leave. Di Maria staying I think is a must. He's still young, will improve, works tirelessly defensively and is very technically gifted. I know he is frustrating and inconsistent but we need his work ethic, speed and creativity/crosses from that RW, even though he might and probly will be a backup though to Reus/navas signing. I would prefer Reus but will dortmund sell? and how much? Navas is spanish and is a great passer, deadly speed, creativity, great crosser and will link much better with ozil. And yes I know navas has a homesickness problem but he could be over it now as he went with spain to south africa and the euros i believe. Was also thinking silva or mata but no way chelsea or city will sell as those 2 are the masterminds in their offence.
AM - ISCO - (he would be the signing for the future and would add to the spanish talent coming in. Him and Ozil rotating and possibly playing at the same time with Modric, Alonso and Ronaldo on the field would be unfair to opposing teams lol, but yea he needs no more introduction. As we know Malaga will sell him and he would replace the aging but still talented Kaka. He will cost though about 25-30 million euros but I believe it will be worth it as he is only like 21 and he will only improve and truly become world class.
RB - CARVAJAL - (Again, a much improvement over Arbeloa as he has done a great job on the right Flank for Leverkusen in the bundesliga, he is spanish, young and he would definetly be the starter for Madrid next year. Thank God for that buy back clause lol. As for his backup i dont believe we need a puchase as Ramos and Nacho can deputize + there is always castilla.)
ST - FALCAO/CAVANI - (No aguero, please, i repeat....no aguero. Aguero is great and all but we need a gritty up in your nose strong striker who will be throwing his weight around during set pieces and aerial battles trying to win headers and picking out long balls with his chest and holding up play/contributing to build up etc. Im not saying aguero cant do that but just not as good as Falcao or Cavani. Aguero is also injury prone, a little weak and doesnt seem to the dirty work that we need in a striker i.e. - getting involved aerially on set pieces and providing strength when in possession of the ball. We all know Falcao and Cavani are beasts in the air. With Ronaldo, Ramos, Varane, Khedira, Falcao/Cavani, we will be a major threat in the air from set pieces. I prefer Falcao to Cavani but i doubt Atletico will sell to their rivals and falcao will not want to disrepect the Atleti supporters/board. I personally want Falcao to stay with Atletico and help them challenge in next years champions league as they have pretty much locked down a spot in next years competition......but as we all know, money talks. So I think our best option is Cavani and at still only 26 years old entering his prime.
CM/CDM - SAHIN/VERRATI/KONDOGBIA/GUNDOGAN/RUBEN PARDO (If we are looking for a true destroyer, basically a rotater with khedira, if essien leaves we should definetly try for kondogbia of Sevilla. He would be inexpensive at about 5 million but very effective and he already stated he wants to play for Madrid. On the Other hand we are looking for a Xabi Alonso replacement whether its next season if he leaves early or the year after that. We already bought that purchase in Luka Modric. I think Modric can and will replace him but is about 27 now so he too will need a replacement in a few years. So I'm thinking a young deep Lying playmaking CDM is required for Madrid's future and rotation with Modric to keep them fresh and energetic. A Sahin return [if dortmund allows and he wants to], Verrati purchase if PSG will sell, or a Gundogan purchase but for how much?? and again will Gundogan want to leave knowing sahin's recent experience? Ruben Pardo is also young with great passing ability, decent tackling skill and a good strike from 20-30 yards out. He has played an integral part in taking sociedad to 4th, actually his game is similar to Alonso but maybe just a notch down on the long range passing ability. Honestly i'm not to sure myself on what option is best but it all depends on what is the best buy for the price and which club will sell. I'm leanin towards Pardo and then Verrati as I'm guessing Sahin and Gundogan might have been rubbed the wrong way about Madrid considering Sahin's transfer stint in Madrid as a CM/CDM.)
Now let's look at youth products who should be called up next year and play a bit part role in the team either as starters/backups in the copa del rey and some la liga matches, and eventually integrate into the first team squad consistently in the next 1-2 seasons:
CM - JOSE RODRIGUEZ
CDM - CASEMIRO
LW/RW/ST - JESE RODRIGUEZ
CB - NACHO
ST - MORATA
This would then be the final lineup in a 4-2-3-1 formation:
Iker/Lopez
Carvajal*------------Ramos/Garay------Varane/Martinez-------Marcelo/Coentrao
Khedira/Kondogbia**----------Alonso/Modric***
Reus or Navas/Di Maria----------------Ozil/Isco---------------Ronaldo/Jese
Cavani/Benzema/Morata
More backups/rotaters:
* ------- Ramos/Nacho to be a back up for Carvajal
** ----- Casemiro as backup to Khedira and Kondogbia
***---- Jose Rodriguez called up to be a backup to Modric and the new signing after Alonso departs.
I will post this on many different Madrid articles to get this out there as I am really looking forward to your feedback and opinions. So feel free to reply and make suggestions/corrections/thoughts. HALA MADRID!
