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As a new Galactico era begins…One in Milan ends…
Published by Ian John on June 11, 2009
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President of Real Madrid Florentino Perez has begun a new Galactico era at the club by announcing the world record signing of Brazillian playmaker Kaka from AC Milan for a deal purported to be in the region of £59m ($90m). The Brazillian midfielder revealed that he left Milan to “help with the clubs financial crisis”, which is a lovely sacrifice from the star and we are at pains to point out that it had nothing to do with the vast hike in wages, lengthy contract, expansive signing on fee or the fact that manager Carlo Ancelotti has now been installed as Roman Abramovic’s flavour of the month at Chelsea (with many reports suggesting Milan’s other saleable asset, striker Alexandre Pato, could be set to join Ancelotti at Stamford Bridge next season).
So while Perez starts to build his second dynasty at Real Madrid upon the foundation stone of Kaka, Adriano Galliani at Milan faces the opposite. An ageing squad, no money and unable to match the biggest European sides in terms of wages, it now seems like an era at Milan is ending. With Kaka gone, Pato reportedly on his way after telling reporters he will discuss his future with Carlo Ancelotti after returning from the Brazilian national team later this week and the likes of Pirlo, Kaladze, Nesta, Shevchenko, Seedorf, Ambrosini, Inzaghi, Favalli, Jankulovski, Gattuso and Dida all pushing 30 or beyond and club figurehead Paolo Maldini now officially retired (not to mention the on loan 34 year old David Beckham), it looks like being a tough time ahead for the Rossonieri. Galliani has a delicate balancing act to do in the next few months. Milan fans will be expecting some major signings to replace Kaka and Pato, should he leave, and there is an obvious need for the new Milan manager, whoever that may be, to bring in players he feels he requires to freshen up a very old and ageing squad. However that must also be married with the fact that Milan owe £60m and while the new manager will be given funds to spend, Galliani will be under no illusions as to the necessity to reduce this debt, while making significant improvements to the current squad. It doesn’t look a particularly easy task for the new Milan manager and one wonders if it is the end of an era for the Rossonieri. Certainly until they can re-establish themselves as the biggest club in Italy. Qualifying for this years Champions League will of course help matters and a good run in that competition will go some way towards papering over the financial cracks, but it remains to be seen if Milan will be a dominant force in Europe over the next two or three years. It seems the gap between them and the top Spanish and English sides, perhaps even with city counterparts Inter, is growing.
For Real Madrid, Kaka’s signing is a major coup for Perez. Depending on which paper you read, his next target is either going to be Cristiano Ronaldo, or Frank Ribery. With Perez making overtures that he would prefer a “good relationship” with Manchester United over signing Cristiano Ronaldo acrimoniously, and the news today that Frank Ribery has asked for talks to “clarify his future” at Bayern, it would seem that a move for Ribery would be the logical choice. However Perez will also be aware that such a move would seem to many Madrid fans as an admittance that they are not going to be able to prise away Ronaldo from Old Trafford, despite Perez promising that during his presidential election campaign. While Ribery would be a fantastic signing in his own right, Perez must be aware that to land the Frenchman would appear to be a compromise. Something that doesn’t fit in with his Galacitico ethos and would represent something of a climbdown. There can be little doubt Perez wants Ronaldo first but United’s reluctance to sell and the players now seeming willingness to remain at Old Trafford are major stumbling blocks for the new Real president. That said, it has been reported that Real are in “negotiations” over the sale of Ronaldo, with a deal around £70m – £80m rumoured. Whether that is enough to persuade Sir Alex Ferguson to cash in on his prized asset remains to be seen.
So we have two of the greatest sides oin the history of European soccer. One starting to rebuild an empire of Galacticos with no discernable debt, the other once famed for doing likewise, now seemingly with an ageing squad and forced to sell their most saleable assets to their most fierce European rivals, with little scope of being able to use the majority of the cash they generate to do anything but pay off debts.
It seems odd that the financial future of both teams can be decided by something so trivial as the location of a training ground, but that seems to be the case.
In the early 2000′s, Madrid were a club cursed with debt until Florentino Perez took over as chairman. One of his first decisions was to sell the former Real Madrid training complex, which just so happened to be sited on a some prime, expensive real estate in the centre of Madrid. This money at a stroke wiped out the clubs debt and allowed Perez his first attempt at building a side packed with Galacticos. Zidane, Figo, Ronaldo and Beckham all followed, as did a plush new training complex on the outskirts of the city. It was Real’s “Get out of Jail” free card and Perez played it with some aplomb. Milan don’t have that similar luxury available to them, which means that cash raised must come either from the fans, sponsorship or the sale of their prime assets. Since then both sides have won the Champions League, but now, in 2009, it is Real Madrid who look set for a rosy future, while even the most ardent Milan fan must admit that their side is now starting to show its age. That combined with the loss of Kaka, and the potential loss also of Alexandre Pato, means that the team will only get weaker.
Football is often about cycles. After many years at the top, maybe it is time for Milan to rebuild. It will be slow, it will be painful and tough decisions will be made. Galliani and co don’t have the luxury of some prime real estate to bail them out. They do have some of world football’s finest superstars.
But for how much longer?
For Real Madrid, it is the start of a new Galactico era. Kaka has signed, Ronaldo is wanted, Frank Ribery, David Villa and Xabi Alonso have all been linked in the press in recent days. Perez still has some tinkering to do, the current Real squad is already too big for Spanish league regulations and it seems the club will have to sell as well as buy, but the gap on Barcelona is closing and if they can sign a Galactico or two more, it could close very quickly.
That’s the power of money in football today. That’s why what you do on the field is not quite as important to some, as how creative and profitable you are financially.
Image Courtesy of **djsmaniak** at Flickr.com
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Nabyl Charania on Thu, 11th Jun 2009 9:13 am
Football is about cycles and it is time for Milan to rebuild and with some of their core talent and the lure of playing at Milan I’m sure they can do it quicker than other clubs, although as you say the power in football today is money, and for some owners its not as important as how you do on the field as how creative and profitable you are financially… I wonder how Kaka and Ronaldo Real Madrid jerses are selling