The Official Football/Soccer Thread: 2017-2018 Season
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And I guess you know the draw: where is Real Madrid??? Out.... okey
The first match is the one that appears like Barcelona-Bayern in Barcelona and the second one is viceversa. Winner of the 1st quarterfinal vs winner of the 2nd quarterfinal will be the 1st semifinal.
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With authority!
Liverpool currently a point behind Man Utd but United do have a game in hand (against Portsmouth).
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Liverpool 5 - Aston Villa 0 Rafa was disappointed because we couldn't score more goals... We were 7 points behind, Man U's goal difference was 11 better, now we're one point behind and our goal difference is 2 better. We could actually win the title again. It's about time. Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez says his side have the belief to go on and win the Premier League this season. The Reds trail Manchester United by one point after Sunday's 5-0 win over Aston Villa and Benitez is keen to exploit any slip-ups from the league leaders. "When you are playing well and scoring goals against top sides you have the belief you can beat anyone," he said. "But we must be calm, win the next game and keep going until the end. Otherwise everything will be wasted." Liverpool's next match is on 4 April at Fulham, who beat United 2-0 at Craven Cottage on Saturday, while Sir Alex Ferguson's side aim to avoid their third defeat in a row when they meet Aston Villa a day later. Benitez added: "Clearly we have confidence and the team is playing well. But we must just wait to see what happens next to United, while we must keep going and keep the team playing at this level." Sunday's win followed on from impressive victories over Real Madrid in the Champions League and at Old Trafford the previous Saturday. What are your thoughts on Liverpool's title chances? Despite this Man Utd still have a game in hand over their title rivals, but Liverpool could be top if they win at Fulham.
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Svenn:
Liverpool 5 - Aston Villa 0 Rafa was disappointed because we couldn't score more goals... We were 7 points behind, Man U's goal difference was 11 better, now we're one point behind and our goal difference is 2 better. We could actually win the title again. It's about time. Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez says his side have the belief to go on and win the Premier League this season. The Reds trail Manchester United by one point after Sunday's 5-0 win over Aston Villa and Benitez is keen to exploit any slip-ups from the league leaders. "When you are playing well and scoring goals against top sides you have the belief you can beat anyone," he said. "But we must be calm, win the next game and keep going until the end. Otherwise everything will be wasted." Liverpool's next match is on 4 April at Fulham, who beat United 2-0 at Craven Cottage on Saturday, while Sir Alex Ferguson's side aim to avoid their third defeat in a row when they meet Aston Villa a day later. Benitez added: "Clearly we have confidence and the team is playing well. But we must just wait to see what happens next to United, while we must keep going and keep the team playing at this level." Sunday's win followed on from impressive victories over Real Madrid in the Champions League and at Old Trafford the previous Saturday. What are your thoughts on Liverpool's title chances? Despite this Man Utd still have a game in hand over their title rivals, but Liverpool could be top if they win at Fulham.
........and if Nando's dream comes true about scoring the winner against those Merchandise United twonks from the Theatre of Screams in the Champions League Final in Rome in May then we could be smiling for the whole summer. It's like I've been saying all along, we needed to attack and steamroller sides rather than play it cagey. It was that scaredy pants attitude which cost us those points earlier in the season. All those draws! To think that we would have been clear and within touch of the title if we'd just went for it....
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Congratulation to England on their 4-0 victory against Slovakia and Beckham sets record! Beckham sets England record in win over Slovakia WEMBLEY, England (AP) - David Beckham made his record 109th appearance as an outfield player for England on Saturday, coming on as a second-half substitute and setting up a goal with a cross in the team's 4-0 friendly win over Slovakia. England vs. Slovakia * England vs. Slovakia After replacing Aaron Lennon at halftime to surpass Bobby Moore's record, the 33-year-old Beckham pulled the ball back in the 70th minute for Wayne Rooney to head in England's second goal at Wembley Stadium. "To play 109 times for England is obviously very special for me and for my family," said Beckham, whose wife Victoria and two sons were in an executive box. "I'll keep this cap for myself. It will be in my house in London, locked up." The former captain, who joined AC Milan on loan from the Los Angeles Galaxy, is now only second to retired goalkeeper Peter Shilton's 125 appearances for England. "Obviously I dedicate it to my family because they are the ones who have been through the ups and downs of my career and been there for the good times and also the bad times," Beckham said. "It's been a rollercoaster but it's been a special night tonight." Beckham's arrival on the field energized the crowd after England's early display lacked fluency and urgency despite Emile Heskey's seventh-minute goal. Frank Lampard also scored, while Rooney added a second goal in injury time. "When you are on the bench you hope to come on and either secure the game or make a difference and produce an assist," said Beckham, who made his England debut against Moldova in September 1996. "I was lucky enough tonight to get in positions where I put a couple of good balls in." Heskey completed some slick interplay between Steven Gerrard and Rooney. Gerrard played in Rooney on the left with a backheel and the Manchester United striker sent a low cross for Heskey to divert into the net from four meters (yards). International Friendlies Wed., Mar. 11 Mexico 5-1 Bolivia Recap Sat., Mar. 28 England 4-0 Slovakia Recap South Africa 2-1 Norway Recap Wed., Apr. 1 Portugal vs. South Africa Norway vs. Finland 2010 World Cup front Lampard scored England's third - and his 15th international goal - in the 82nd with a scuffed angled shot after running onto Michael Carrick's through ball. Rooney rounded off a clinical and energetic performance by chipping Slovakia goalkeeper Stefan Senecky. "I'm very happy for Rooney. He played very well and scored two goals," England coach Fabio Capello said. "He's very important for England for us. He's like the joker in a pack of cards - he can play in any position." But the win could come at a cost after three England strikers were substituted. Capello is only certain that Peter Crouch, who picked up a knock, will be fit for Wednesday's match against Ukraine with England looking for its fifth straight win in World Cup qualifying. Shortly after scoring, Heskey came off with a suspected calf injury, and replacement Carlton Cole lasted less than 20 minutes before he made way in the 34th for Crouch, who limped off in the 74th. Heskey will undergone a scan Sunday, but Cole will be sent back to West Ham for treatment on his abductor injury. Capello called forward Darren Bent into the squad after ruling out a return for injury-plagued striker Michael Owen. Still, the Italian coach will be able to count on the 23-year-old Rooney, who is expected to make his 50th appearance for England - a mark Beckham reached at the 2002 World Cup at the age of 27. "We were speaking about Becks and my 50th cap on the way here and I was saying to Wayne he could possibly get to 150," captain John Terry said. "He's probably missed 20 games through injuries and suspensions and things, but he's very young, very talented and one of the best in the world that's for sure." While much of the focus was on Beckham's history-making match, there were also glimpses of the future. Ben Foster, a 25-year-old goalkeeper, replaced David James at halftime to make his second England appearance after a two-year wait. http://msn.foxsports.com/soccer/story/9386172/Beckham-sets-England-record-in-win-over-Slovakia#tb
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FULHAM 0 - LIVERPOOL 1 yes!!!!!!!!!!!
Liverpool moved top of the Premier League with a dramatic injury-time winner from Yossi Benayoun at Fulham. The Reds, now above Manchester United by two points having played two games more, struck very late after hitting the woodwork four times in the match. Andrea Dossena hit the bar twice - each time with a header, Xabi Alonso volleyed against the bar and Fernando Torres dragged a shot against the post. But on 92 minutes, Benayoun drove in from 12 yards to snatch victory. Benyoun's strike was met with wild celebrations on the touchline as Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez and his staff released pent-up emotions after they had been frustrated viewers for more than an hour-and-a-half. It had looked as though Liverpool would fail to win a game they had dominated, particularly in the first half, and that would have seriously harmed their chances of winning their first league title since 1990.
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david mitchelson:
Svenn:
Liverpool 5 - Aston Villa 0 Rafa was disappointed because we couldn't score more goals... We were 7 points behind, Man U's goal difference was 11 better, now we're one point behind and our goal difference is 2 better. We could actually win the title again. It's about time. Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez says his side have the belief to go on and win the Premier League this season. The Reds trail Manchester United by one point after Sunday's 5-0 win over Aston Villa and Benitez is keen to exploit any slip-ups from the league leaders. "When you are playing well and scoring goals against top sides you have the belief you can beat anyone," he said. "But we must be calm, win the next game and keep going until the end. Otherwise everything will be wasted." Liverpool's next match is on 4 April at Fulham, who beat United 2-0 at Craven Cottage on Saturday, while Sir Alex Ferguson's side aim to avoid their third defeat in a row when they meet Aston Villa a day later. Benitez added: "Clearly we have confidence and the team is playing well. But we must just wait to see what happens next to United, while we must keep going and keep the team playing at this level." Sunday's win followed on from impressive victories over Real Madrid in the Champions League and at Old Trafford the previous Saturday. What are your thoughts on Liverpool's title chances? Despite this Man Utd still have a game in hand over their title rivals, but Liverpool could be top if they win at Fulham.
........and if Nando's dream comes true about scoring the winner against those Merchandise United twonks from the Theatre of Screams in the Champions League Final in Rome in May then we could be smiling for the whole summer. It's like I've been saying all along, we needed to attack and steamroller sides rather than play it cagey. It was that scaredy pants attitude which cost us those points earlier in the season. All those draws! To think that we would have been clear and within touch of the title if we'd just went for it....
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Another great post from you.
Merchandise United are under pressure now. They are so overrated, hopefully Aston Villa can beat them tomorrow.
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Svenn
You talk about leaving it late...
...Lordy!! Yosssssiiiiiii!!!! Now we need the villains to do over the mancs tomorrow and we will have them sweating buckets. Old codger Slurgie 'I've lost the plot' Fergie has said he'll retire when he's over taken Liverpool's titles record. So hopefully he'll still be going when he's 103.....
News is that the scumchester gremlins have lined up Ribery from Bayern in the summer to replace Real bound 'winker' Ronaldo. One thing for certain is that Ribery will be one of the better looking players in Merchandise's ugly bug squad. Also the old soak Slurgie has said that Bitters manager David Moyes is THE man he wants to replace him at Old Trampsford when he eventually succumbs totally to the bottle.....hic! Ooo, I hate scumchester already and if they give Moyes the managers job in two years time there'll be even more reason to loathe them with a passion.
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Didn't watch it but United apparently won it in injury time as well.
david mitchelson:
One thing for certain is that Ribery will be one of the better looking players in Merchandise's ugly bug squad.
You could probably get away with one of those "seperated at birth" things with Ribery and Gary Neville.
![](http://www.topnews.in/sports/files/franck-ribery.jpg[/img] [img]http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/08_01/GaryNevilleLonLite_228x309.jpg)
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Could you give a warning please before you post photos like that again.......I really wanna chuck!.....
Ribery reminds me of Sloth from The Goonies. It was a good winning goal but really those bottlers from Villa had the opportunity to put the mancs in a terrible state and they allowed them to come back. Man United were under strength and awful.....perfect chance to blow them out of the water....
: That was going to be one of the games where they could have lost the title. They're gonna win it by 1 point......I can just see it!
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And there you have the mystery that is Liverpool Football Club.......four games of brilliance and then we crumple into a big stinkin' heap against the chavs.....the performance the players put in was shameful. Liverpool 1 vs Chelsea 3 I'm backing Barca.....
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Our first home loss in 14 months. This was a disappointing game but we can still knock out Chelsea. We won 4-1 at Old Trafford and we can do the same at Stamford Bridge.
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david mitchelson:
Svenn
You talk about leaving it late...
...Lordy!! Yosssssiiiiiii!!!! Now we need the villains to do over the mancs tomorrow and we will have them sweating buckets. Old codger Slurgie 'I've lost the plot' Fergie has said he'll retire when he's over taken Liverpool's titles record. So hopefully he'll still be going when he's 103.....
News is that the scumchester gremlins have lined up Ribery from Bayern in the summer to replace Real bound 'winker' Ronaldo. One thing for certain is that Ribery will be one of the better looking players in Merchandise's ugly bug squad. Also the old soak Slurgie has said that Bitters manager David Moyes is THE man he wants to replace him at Old Trampsford when he eventually succumbs totally to the bottle.....hic! Ooo, I hate scumchester already and if they give Moyes the managers job in two years time there'll be even more reason to loathe them with a passion.
Maybe Scumchester will win their 18th title... but it will be a while before they get their 19th, Ferguson is certainly a very old man then!
Ribery is very good looking compared to the players at Old Trampsford, you are so right.
Ferguson wants Moyes to replace him? I didn't know that, I think I'll hate the club even more when that happens. This is what he said when he took over Everton: "I am from a city (Glasgow) that is not unlike Liverpool. I am joining the people's football club. The majority of people you meet on the street are Everton fans. It is a fantastic opportunity, something you dream about. I said 'yes' right away as it is such a big club." A big club... yeah right! Finally, some Bill Shankly quotes: ?This city has two great teams - Liverpool and Liverpool reserves.? ?When I've got nothing better to do, I look down the league table to see how Everton are getting along.? ?If Everton were playing down the bottom of my garden, I'd draw the curtains.?
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Svenn Lordy, it's taken until now to get over that dreadful team performance last night. Chelsea were easily the better side and kept us quiet and especially Stevie G. We CAN go there and win 3-0 but it's gonna be a very tall order. I just hope this doesn't affect our confidence in the Premier League. Just as we were on a roll as well, would you adam and eve it...
: If I didn't know any better I would say it was the age old LFC problem rearing it's ugly head (Ribery....
.....if only he could play for us ) again.....where the players get a few good wins under their belts and the team looks like it's on a roll, then their heads inflate and the next opposition shoot them down in flames. Still news from the home front is that behind the scenes there's frantic activity regarding the ditching our two American owners Twit and Tw*t. They have been a bloomin' nightmare for the club and have left us with huge debts. Now word is that Dumb and Dumber have got major financial woes in the States and they trying to sell stuff to raise money and nobody is biting. Hopefully if they get some cash together they'll not psend it on LFC but use it to shore up their fancy lifestyles. They have to meet a deadline with the banks around the end of July this year apparently. There is a family from Kuwait who are interested and they've been seen at the ground......and surprise, surprise they happened to be related to the Sheikh of Dubai (the original party who wanted to buy our club using their business arm the now defunct DIC) by marriage. Can't help thinking that this bunch if they do buy could end up selling a large percentage of what they capture to the rulers of Dubai. Think the rulers of Dubai and UAE had a falling out with the fat oaf Hicks a while ago and he's refused to meet with them since. One thing that does concern me is their human rights record. We now need to concentrate on the League though.....and pray that we can swing it next week. One thing is for certain if we come up against Barca we're gonna have to be on top form.....if we play like we did last night we'll get crushed.
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Crazy Champions League... Man Utd drawing 2-2 at home, I don't know what happened. Villarreal and Arsenal, played similar and they both scored when they pushed the other team to be close to their goalkeeper. Barça did another show. And keeping strength for the Spanish league. And Liverpool seemed to be the Team of the Moment and lost 1-3. Maybe Essien defending Gerrard or so... Looks like yet another Barcelona-Chelsea k.o. round.
Standings of the Macca Board Fantasy Football League after this round: 1 Oliver Sanz's Team (21st Century Paul) 50 this round, 390 in all the rounds 2 Louisville United (Daniel) 39, 374 3 FC Blaugrana (unclesox) 48, 346 30,798th, 47,278th and 82,458th out of 273,422 teams. We're not doing bad. I hope some will join us in the next Champions League, next year, and in the World Cup 2010.
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FC Barcelona 2, Recreativo 0
Iniesta's goal in the first minute meant that the team has scored a goal in 29 consecutive league matches this season, a new Liga record. Numancia are the only side to have kept a clean sheet on the Blaugrana, back in the first match of the season
In the quest to regain the title, Barcelona are also chasing a few impressive league records. With 8 matches remaining in the season they are... -- 4 wins away from equalling the 28 victories set by the Blaugrana team of 1996/97. -- 20 goals away from equalling the all-time scoring tally of 107 set by Real Madrid in 1989/90. -- 10 points away from equalling the highest point tally (85) set during a 38-match season. -- 17 points away from equalling the highest point tally from any season (92) set by Real Madrid in 1996/97 during a 42-match season. With Real Madrid nine points behind (with a game in hand - they host Valladolid on Sunday) and keeping the pace, Barcelona are in no position to relax and allow points slip away. And the schedule does not get any easier. APRIL Tue 14 - CL qtr-2 (A) Bayern Munich Sun 19 - J31 (A) Getafe Wed 22 - J32 (H) Sevilla Sat 25 - J33 (A) Valencia [color=gray]T/W 28/29 - CL semi-1, Chelsea/Liverpool MAY Sat 2 - J34 (A) Real Madrid [color=gray]T/W 5/6 - CL semi-2, Chelsea/Liverpool Sat 9 - J35 (H) Villarreal Wed 13 - Copa del Rey Final (in Valencia) Athletic Bilbao Sun 17 - J36 (A) Mallorca Sun 24 - J37 (H) Osasuna [color=gray]Wed 27 - Champions League Final in Rome Sun 31 - J38 (A) Deportivo
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david mitchelson:
Svenn Lordy, it's taken until now to get over that dreadful team performance last night. Chelsea were easily the better side and kept us quiet and especially Stevie G. We CAN go there and win 3-0 but it's gonna be a very tall order. I just hope this doesn't affect our confidence in the Premier League. Just as we were on a roll as well, would you adam and eve it...
: If I didn't know any better I would say it was the age old LFC problem rearing it's ugly head (Ribery....
.....if only he could play for us ) again.....where the players get a few good wins under their belts and the team looks like it's on a roll, then their heads inflate and the next opposition shoot them down in flames. Still news from the home front is that behind the scenes there's frantic activity regarding the ditching our two American owners Twit and Tw*t. They have been a bloomin' nightmare for the club and have left us with huge debts. Now word is that Dumb and Dumber have got major financial woes in the States and they trying to sell stuff to raise money and nobody is biting. Hopefully if they get some cash together they'll not psend it on LFC but use it to shore up their fancy lifestyles. They have to meet a deadline with the banks around the end of July this year apparently. There is a family from Kuwait who are interested and they've been seen at the ground......and surprise, surprise they happened to be related to the Sheikh of Dubai (the original party who wanted to buy our club using their business arm the now defunct DIC) by marriage. Can't help thinking that this bunch if they do buy could end up selling a large percentage of what they capture to the rulers of Dubai. Think the rulers of Dubai and UAE had a falling out with the fat oaf Hicks a while ago and he's refused to meet with them since. One thing that does concern me is their human rights record. We now need to concentrate on the League though.....and pray that we can swing it next week. One thing is for certain if we come up against Barca we're gonna have to be on top form.....if we play like we did last night we'll get crushed.
Hello David.
The bad result against Chelsea certainly did not affect our confidence. We thrashed Blackburn and improved our goal difference. It could be important. The first goal by Torres was brilliant, the one from Agger was also pretty good. I was hoping Scumchester Utd would drop a couple of points when Sunderland equalised, but once again Macheda rescued them. Moneychester Utd lucky again...But they have seven games left, and they will lose points. It will be difficult, but we can win the title. Thanks for the info about Dumb and Dumber, it was a big mistake letting them take over the club... They borrowed a lot of money to finance their purchase. So many promises after the takeover, but not much has happened. The new stadium should have been built by now, but now we have to wait for new owners. It would be great if the family from Kuwait buys the club and sell it to Dubai. It was touching to see that the Hillsborogh tragedy was remembered before today's game. Anfield remembers Hillsborough: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/7995038.stm
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unclesox:
FC Barcelona 2, Recreativo 0
Iniesta's goal in the first minute meant that the team has scored a goal in 29 consecutive league matches this season, a new Liga record. Numancia are the only side to have kept a clean sheet on the Blaugrana, back in the first match of the season
In the quest to regain the title, Barcelona are also chasing a few impressive league records. With 8 matches remaining in the season they are... -- 4 wins away from equalling the 28 victories set by the Blaugrana team of 1996/97. -- 20 goals away from equalling the all-time scoring tally of 107 set by Real Madrid in 1989/90. -- 10 points away from equalling the highest point tally (85) set during a 38-match season. -- 17 points away from equalling the highest point tally from any season (92) set by Real Madrid in 1996/97 during a 42-match season. With Real Madrid nine points behind (with a game in hand - they host Valladolid on Sunday) and keeping the pace, Barcelona are in no position to relax and allow points slip away. And the schedule does not get any easier. APRIL Tue 14 - CL qtr-2 (A) Bayern Munich Sun 19 - J31 (A) Getafe Wed 22 - J32 (H) Sevilla Sat 25 - J33 (A) Valencia [color=gray]T/W 28/29 - CL semi-1, Chelsea/Liverpool MAY Sat 2 - J34 (A) Real Madrid [color=gray]T/W 5/6 - CL semi-2, Chelsea/Liverpool Sat 9 - J35 (H) Villarreal Wed 13 - Copa del Rey Final (in Valencia) Athletic Bilbao Sun 17 - J36 (A) Mallorca Sun 24 - J37 (H) Osasuna [color=gray]Wed 27 - Champions League Final in Rome Sun 31 - J38 (A) Deportivo
Yes, Barça is playing better than ever and set to break some records. Still that overshadows Real Madrid, who's really 6 points away only... 6 points away of a team breaking records about points. Real Madrid is actually able to beat some records this season too... And soon Barça will play in the Bernabeu... as Guardiola says "Real Madrid is making us do this"... sort of a Lennon for a McCartney or so...
In the meantime, a lot of rumours of Kaka... and Cesc. Oh, my, Cesc Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo. I said that 3 years ago... and they try to sign them 3 years later when they're more expensive and older.
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21st Century Paul:
In the meantime, a lot of rumours of Kaka... and Cesc. Oh, my, Cesc Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo. I said that 3 years ago... and they try to sign them 3 years later when they're more expensive and older.
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Oh, come on. They were big names 3 years ago. It's not as if no one had heard of them and they could've been bought on the cheap. And I'm sure Real were interested in them 3 years ago. They're interested in every big name every single year.
: But if Arsenal, Milan and Manchester United weren't willing to sell, then there's nothing they could've done. Correct? Remember roughly 1 1/2 years ago I mentioned two Argentine youngsters, Pablo Piatti and Ezequiel Lavezzi? You said you had never heard of them. Surely you've heard of them by now.
Those are the type of players that can be bought for a good price. Real only wants players who have already become established. You cannot buy them at a bargain price (unless they are on a Bosman).
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unclesox:
21st Century Paul:
In the meantime, a lot of rumours of Kaka... and Cesc. Oh, my, Cesc Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo. I said that 3 years ago... and they try to sign them 3 years later when they're more expensive and older.
:
Oh, come on. They were big names 3 years ago. It's not as if no one had heard of them and they could've been bought on the cheap. And I'm sure Real were interested in them 3 years ago. They're interested in every big name every single year.
: But if Arsenal, Milan and Manchester United weren't willing to sell, then there's nothing they could've done. Correct? Remember roughly 1 1/2 years ago I mentioned two Argentine youngsters, Pablo Piatti and Ezequiel Lavezzi? You said you had never heard of them. Surely you've heard of them by now.
Those are the type of players that can be bought for a good price. Real only wants players who have already become established. You cannot buy them at a bargain price (unless they are on a Bosman).
Well, when I thought on those 3: Real Madrid asked for CR7... the prize was 20 milion euros... and they thought it was too much.
For Kaka the figure was 30. And for Cesc 15. And they thought it was "too much".
Real Madrid has spent 35 for Robben, 15 for Heinze, 15 for Diarra1, 15 for Diarra2, 20 for Van der Vaart, 20 for Robinho, 20 for Huntelaar, 15 for Drenthe, 15 for Gago, 25 for Sneijder... I mean they didn't ask much seeing what Real Madrid has paid for others. Some of them not even players that are always on the starting team (like Casillas, Raul, Sergio Ramos, Pepe...) Yes, well, not we could bring some other new names... they wouldn't sign them anyway. For instance Aaron Lennon is supposed to cost 20 milion or so, but he will cost more soon. Fernando Llorente would be cheap now and he will be great. Not to mention David Villa, always "too expensive"...