A lot of people must be asking themselves if Real is a serious title contender or not, be it for the poor signings or because of the consequences the departure of D.Beckham and R.Carlos will cause. I actually think Real will struggle to finish in the top four this season for a couple of reasons. Mainly they haven't found a replacement for D.Beckham, the man who created most of Madrid's goals via a cross or free-kick. Typically they have ignored this fact completely, choosing instead to waste their time attempting impossible signings(most of them going for Kaka) and now they think A.Robben is the player needed. Why does Real say Robben is a priority? He would be another Robinho on the team and don't get me wrong he's a very talented player, but shouldn't Real Madrid focus more on the creative strenght of the team? With Guti as the only true creative player, although a great underrated player I think Real should at least have another creative talent on the team. That other creative talent could be Riquelme, a proven world class player and cheaper than not-so-good players. If Real could manage to sign both Robben and Riquelme then they would be serious contenders on any competition, because with Robinho and Robben keeping the oposition/defense busy then Riquelme would be free to do what he does best; controlling games, giving the killer pass, dominating the oponent and most importantly entertaining the madridistas. Not only would Riquelme make Real Madrid an interesting and attractive side, but he would also replace Beckham as the free-kick taker, this in my opinion is very important because most of the club's goals came from a Beckham free-kick.
Many can say Riquelme is overrated, that he can't handle the pressure, that he doesn't perform when surrounded by other stars, that he doesn't compare to Kaka, that he's slow or that he's a spoiled player, but I can tell you differently. The only flaw I can see in Riquelme's game is that he doesn't perform that well when agressively man-marked, but when you mix him with players like Robben and Robinho the oposition can't afford to man-mark him. This is when Roman plays at his best, taking advantage of the space the oposition allows him and dictating the play. So finally Riquelme is the modern day Carlos Valderrama and it would be a shame if Real Madrid let's this oportunity slip by.
Anyway i would like to know the opinion of anyone who cares, ¿is Real Madrid a title contender or not?
Johan Cruijff; "Simple football is the most beautiful. But playing simple football is the hardest thing".