In the wake of Ramon Calderon's resignation, opinions are divided as to what sort of legacy he has left behind.
In the wake of Ramon Calderon's resignation as Real Madrid president, opinions are divided as to what sort of legacy he has left behind.
Will he be best remembered as the man who helped bring the glory days back to the Spanish giants, or will his place in history be defined more by unfulfilled transfer vows and the role he played in last summer's tiresome Cristiano Ronaldo saga?
Madridistas can have few complaints as the Spanish superpowers have been awash with silverware since Calderon took up his post.
Prior to Calderon's election, Madrid's football team had not won a single major trophy since 2003 but, with coaches Fabio Capello, Bernd Schuster and now Juande Ramos pulling the strings, there have been two more Primera Liga titles and the Spanish Supercopa added to the club's list of achievements.
Calderon said at the end of last season: "This league title will be more special for me because it will be my second. It will also be the first time we win two consecutive league titles in 18 years. I think we are doing a great job."
It was a similar story on the basketball side of things, with Madrid winning the league and the ULEB Cup - their first European title in a decade - while Calderon was still in his first 12 months of office.
That was the first time in 21 years that both the Madrid football and basketball teams have been league champions at the same time.
On the flip side though, Calderon detractors could point out that while the 57-year-old lawyer was the figurehead of the club, sporting success was down to the performances of players, coaching staff and the technical team, and had little to do with the president himself.
And Madrid's transfer record during his tenure has hardly been a resounding success, with plenty of money being spent but a number of big fish slipping through the net.
However, when it comes to big transfers, former Madrid president Florentino Perez casts a long shadow indeed.
Perez's so-called 'Galacticos' policy of signing at least one star name every summer - whatever the cost - established Madrid as the most powerful club in the world, but it also set a precedent that future presidents would struggle to match.
Proof of that was in the 2006 election race to find the long-term successor to Perez, who stepped down that January after six years in charge, citing the need for change having not won any major silverware since 2003.
Five men including Calderon challenged for the position, and each of them made extravagant promises about which players and coaches they would bring in should they be elected.
It is impossible to tell how successful the other candidates would have been in fulfilling their respective pledges, but Calderon's player promises proved largely hollow.
Of the three big-name players he claimed would be bought, Kaka and Cesc Fabregas stayed put, and while the third, Arjen Robben, did end up moving to Madrid, it was not until 12 months later, for a fee of more than £20million.
Madrid's transfer failings during Calderon's presidency were not limited to those players either.
The club's long chase for Manchester United winger Ronaldo, in which Calderon played a very vocal role, has so far failed, and also landed Madrid and Calderon in the English giants' bad books.
The European champions lodged an official complaint with FIFA over Madrid's pursuit of the Portugal international and United coach Sir Alex Ferguson also hit out at Calderon following his comments about player slavery.
"In terms of great clubs, Barcelona have far better morality than Real Madrid will ever have," said Ferguson.
Calderon, however, responded by insisting his club had "conducted themselves exquisitely" in the whole affair.
He added: "We are not going to start a conflict. We're sorry that Manchester United, a club with which we have an excellent relationship, is annoyed with us because Real Madrid have nothing to do with that aspect."
Ronaldo was not the only player to shun Madrid this summer though, with both David Villa and Santi Cazorla reportedly ignoring overtures from the Spanish champions and committing their futures to Valencia and Villarreal, respectively.
That meant Madrid's only summer signing for this season was Rafael van der Vaart, and they were also unable to keep hold of forward Robinho, who left on transfer deadline day for Manchester City despite Calderon saying 24 hours previously: "There will be no player coming in and no player leaving."
Madrid's lack of success in the transfer market combined with Robinho's determination to leave suggested the club can no longer lay claim to being every player's dream destination - something unimaginable not so long ago when they were prising the likes of Zinedine Zidane, Luis Figo and Brazilian ace Ronaldo away from reluctant sellers.
That said, as long as Madrid continued to pick up trophies, off-field matters would have stayed in the background. But this season they have stuttered, allowing a 12-point chasm to open between them and leaders Barcelona.
They were knocked out of the Copa del Rey last week and face a tough tie against Liverpool in the last 16 of the Champions League.
Calderon, who once said "this club wants its money to be on the pitch, not in the bank", would no doubt have tried to put things right by splashing more cash in this month's transfer window and in the summer, but now he will not get the chance.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Roman Calderon Resigns
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Results - Barclays Premier League Week 21
Aston Villa 2-1 West Brom
Davies 18:13 Morrison 48:05
Agbonlahor 40:15
Everton 2-0 Hull
Fellaini 18:00
Arteta 45:00(0:08)
Arsenal 1-0 Bolton
Bendtner 83:2
Newcastle 2-2 West Ham
Owen 18:16
Carroll 77:46
Middlesbrough 1-1 Sunderland
Alves 44:25 Jones 81:07
Stoke 0-0 Liverpool
SEO Busby Web Solutions
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of optimizing your web pages and getting links into your site in order to achieve the highest search engine rankings possible for your keywords/phrases. Busby SEO Test is keyphrase used in a second SEO worldcup held by Busby web solution.
Ethical SEO is simply a way to help your pages rank well compared to pages of similar quality and relevancy, making them easier for visitors to find. It also makes the search engine results for your pages' keywords better for the search engine's users.
There are many ethical SEO professionals offering their services on the web, one among the best is Software House.
Busby Web Solutions again hold a contest with the name Busby SEO Test II was opened on Oct. 1 2008 and will dikahiri on 31 January 2009. Prizes will be awarded on the winner between 1 to 5.
Gift
First Prize: First Prize: $ 5,000 $ 5,000
Second Prize: Second Prize: $ 2,000 $ 2,000
Third Prize: Third Prize: $ 500 $ 500
Fourth Prize: Fourth Prize: $ 250 $ 250
Fifth Prize: fifth prize: $ 100 $ 100
If you want to know the tips for SEO optimization, please click on Tips
Friday, January 9, 2009
Inter and Barca to bid for Villa?
Inter Milan and Barcelona could start an unprecedented bidding war in the offseason for Valencia’s David Villa.
Villa was expected to make a mega money move following a stellar Euro 2008 outing with Spain last summer, but ended up remaining with his current team, Valencia.
Los Che have slapped a 50 million Euro price tag on the forward, but some clubs have been willing to pay even more than that for Villa to ply his trade at their stadium.
Barcelona allegedly had a 35 million Euro bid rejected in the offseason, and are braced for a bidding war with Serie A giants Inter Milan in the next transfer window.
The Nerazzurri are in search for the perfect partner for Zlatan Ibrahimovic in their strikeforce, and Villa seems to fit the bill in his ability to play off a dominant striker. Barcelona are also reportedly in the market for another attacker.
However, with Samuel Eto'o having reconciled with everyone at the club and Barca coach Pep Guardiola keen to dole out playing time to develop youngster Bojan Krkic, the Catalans are unlikely to make their interest concrete unless one of their strikers leaves the club.
In another development, Manchester City are also said to be interested in the Spaniard, and could bid for the player given their current spending power.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Defoe to Spurs
Portsmouth striker Jermain Defoe is set to clinch a return to Tottenham after a fee was agreed for the player.
Spurs chairman Daniel Levy and Pompey chief executive Peter Storrie have been in talks over the weekend to negotiate a deal in the region of US$22 million.
The 26-year-old is thought to be scheduled for a medical with the club he left just under a year ago.
"Portsmouth can confirm a fee has been agreed with Tottenham for Jermain Defoe," read a statement from Pompey.
Jermain Defoe's career in pictures!
Spurs boss Harry Redknapp bought Defoe for Pompey in the 2008 January window and his return had been suggested since the change of manager at White Hart Lane two months ago.
Tottenham fans continued to sing his name while Defoe went on a run of eight goals in his first seven Pompey games. He has added nine goals in this campaign.
"I wouldn't have sold him if I was manager at Portsmouth and Tottenham came back in," Redknapp admitted. "I'd be keeping him."
Redknapp has prioritised a striker and a left-sided midfielder in the current window, with Middlesbrough's Stewart Downing also subject of a bid from Spurs.
Ghana midfielder Stephen Appiah is on trial at Spurs this week and could sign until the end of the season.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Spanish Media Exaggerated On Ronaldinho - Henry
Barcelona striker Thierry Henry talked about the Spanish media's harsh treatment of Ronaldinho in his last season at the club before he joined Milan.
Many people were highly skeptical when Milan signed Ronaldinho from Barcelona last summer in what was certainly the biggest move of the year. However, the Brazilian superstar has silenced the skeptics in these first months at the club by scoring several goals and providing a number of assists.
A number of fallouts with coach Frank Rijkaard and reports of wild nights out on the town led the Spanish press to describe him as a finished player, although his allegedly poor physical condition didn't help either. His declining reputation was also reflected in last summer's transfer period, as there were only two clubs interested in signing him from Barça: Manchester City and Milan.
Considering the player's form with the Rossoneri so far this season, however, it seems those judgments were highly exaggerated. Blaugrana striker Thierry Henry also believes the Ballon d'Or was treated unfairly by the Spanish press.
"I never accepted the way they treated a player like Ronaldinho, who gave a lot to Barcelona," he said to 'Sport'. "He certainly didn't go through a happy period last season, but he didn't kill anyone either. He's a lad with a big heart and the team were very sad to read what was being said about him."
Ronaldinho has scored seven goals in Serie A so far, making him the team's top scorer along with Kaká, and two in the Uefa Cup.
Transfer News! Podolski to Spurs?
German striker Lukas Podolski claims that Tottenham have approached him about a move to London. - Corriere dello Sport
Mexican club Chivas have declared their interest in signing Spurs' forward Giovani Dos Santos - Setanta Sports
Jose Mourinho ruled out a move for Newcastle and England striker Michael Owen. - La Gazzetta dello Sport
Jermain Defoe might have played his last game for Portsmouth with strong rumours that he will make a return to former club Tottenham Hotspur. - The Telegraph
Chelsea are set to table a bid for CSKA Moscow's Yuri Zhirkov as a replacement for Wayne Bridge if the England left-back joins Manchester City. - Daily Mail
Mark Hughes wants to take West Ham midfielder Scott Parker to the Eastlands. - The Times
Valencia are prepared to offload their star striker David Villa for the right price with Manchester City seemingly keen. - The Independent
The Hammers will let Australian defender Lucas Neill leave the club on a free transfer to lower their wage bill. - The Sun
Serie A giants AC Milan are reportedly eager to take
Chelsea's Brazilian defender Alex to the San Siro. - The Sun
Shay Given might be leaving the Magpies with Manchester City, Tottenham and Arsenal the supposedly interested parties. - Daily Mirror
Internazionale's French midfielder Olivier Dacourt is keen on a move to join Gary Megson's Bolton Wanderers. - The Sun
Hull City are pondering whether to make a move for Wigan's hard-tackling midfielder, Michael Brown. - Daily Telegraph
Cristian Rodriguez of Porto and Juan Arango of Mallorca will become Spurs' next best options if they fail to land England winger Stewart Downing. - The Times
Sir Alex Ferguson kicked off his January spending by securing the services of Serbian duo Zoran Tosic and Adem Ljajic from Partizan Belgrade
Redknapp: US$29 million for Defoe
\
Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp believes Portsmouth want 'in excess of US$29 million' for England striker Jermain Defoe.
Defoe wants to leave Fratton Park but Spurs chairman Daniel Levy could not agree a fee with Pompey chairman Peter Storrie when the pair met yesterday.
Redknapp, when asked how much Pompey would want, said: "I think it's in excess of US$29 million probably.
"The two clubs are miles apart in their valuation of the player so I think we'll have to move on."
Pompey manager Tony Adams insists he will have the final say over whether Defoe leaves the club.
Defoe may miss today's FA Cup visit of Bristol City as he was absent from training after phoning in sick and Adams revealed the club sent a doctor to the striker's Hertfordshire home to assess his condition.
Adams said: "Peter Storrie had a meeting with him last Wednesday, which I sat in on, and Jermain expressed a desire to leave.
"I think Peter is talking to a few clubs about him but the final decision will be mine and I have a price in mind of what I think he is worth.
"He is a superb player and a great goalscorer but I have not yet made up my mind whether or not I am going to sell him.
"I have to make a call on that like I had to with Lassana Diarra when Real Madrid came knocking.
"If I wanted to play him against Bristol City I could because he is still a Portsmouth player but it looks as if his illness has taken that out of my hands."
