Bye Bye Brazil, Hello Holland

Real Madrid's love affair with Brazilian footballers seems to be slowly coming to an end. At its height, back in Florentino Pérez's last season as club president, the squad boasted five Brazilians in its ranks: Roberto Carlos, Cicinho, Baptista, Robinho and Ronaldo. As of today, with the sale of Julio Baptista to Roma for €12 million, this number now stands at two: Robinho and Marcelo. If you listen to the sports press, and Robinho does end up in Phil Scolari's Chelsea, it could soon be just one.

There could be two factors at play in this changing trend: the most plausible one is that, Marcelo aside, all of the other Brazilian players were signed before Ramón Calderón's ascent to power at Real Madrid. And, apart from Roberto Carlos, they were all signed in Florentino Pérez's era. Calderón has not bothered to hide his dislike for his previous boss and has even gone so far as to accuse him of meddling in the affairs of the club following his resignation. He may be thinking of putting his own stamp on the squad by getting rid of those who arrived under Florentino. The second possible factor is the growing perception at Real Madrid of Brazilians as "problematic". In other words, a fondness for the party life and complaints when not selected in the starting 11.

It is no secret that Robinho is unsettled at the club. Marca goes so far as to suggest that he has told Calderón in person that he wants to leave, although the president has so far refused to entertain any offers from Chelsea. This contrasts interestingly with some of his statements during the Cristiano Ronaldo saga to the effect that he would never keep anyone at the club who was unhappy there.

The focus at the club, quite possibly heavily influenced by Bernd Schuster, has now shifted towards players perceived to be more solid, more reliable. This has resulted in an unprecedented number of Dutch players being signed. Van Nistelrooy was signed in 2006 (under Capello), followed by Robben, Sneijder and Drenthe last summer. The recent addition of Van der Vaart to the squad brings the total number up to five. The only nationality with a larger representation is, obviously, Spanish.

The Dutchmen have all, so far, integrated well at the club, and there are no obvious cliques being formed. Without generalising about national traits (a futile exercise, in any case), there is a feeling that these signings are contributing to building a more compact, resilient squad. More of a team than a bunch of talented individuals, in other words. And that can only be a good thing in the long run.

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Transfer boredom

Given the week-long gap between games at this stage of the season, press reports on Real Madrid during the greater part of the week have been concentrating on possible transfer movements during the summer. I normally don't bother reporting 90% of this stuff as it's more often than not concocted out of thin air, so I tend to wait till it's either officially announced, or the buzz is so insistent that there's a good chance it will happen. But I thought it would be at least amusing to record what is being said and then come back next September, after the transfer window closes, to see whether there was any truth in any of the stories.

The list of possible additions to the squad includes the following:

• Diego: His transfer was already hinted at after his display against Real Madrid for Werder Bremen in the Champions League earlier this season. In recent days, his father (and manager) confirmed a number of clubs, including Real, have expressed an interest.
  
• Huntelaar: As insists Chelsea and Real will fight it out for the Ajax striker.
  
• De Rossi: Mijatovic was in Rome this week to watch Roma and Manchester United in their Champions League quarter final tie and allegedly ask about the contractual situation of a number of players. De Rossi would theoretically be a replacement for Diarra, but with more technical ability.
  
• Aquilani: Mijatovic also looked at this more attack-minded Roma midfielder, although it is hard to see where he would fit in given the large number of players able to fill this position.
  
• Vucinic: The third Roma player allegedly in Real's books, although supposedly as a back-up striker should other options not pan out.
  
• Garay: Supposedly going to Barcelona at the end of the season, the Catalan club's interest has reportedly cooled following an injury that will keep him out until the end of the season. Real may therefore join the bidding, while Spurs and Liverpool also expressed an interest earlier this year.
  
• Luis Fabiano: Interest in the Sevilla striker seemed to wane after his performance at the Bernabéu last Sunday, where he was even less able to slot one in the back of the net than Higuaín.
  
• Drogba: Sport claims he would follow Mourinho to his next club, and they're convinced that Schuster won't be at the helm next season, so there you go...
  
• Quaresma: If FC Porto, at the centre of a match-fixing scandal, is relegated, some of its stars may seek clubs with Champions League potential. This is what happened when Real scooped up Cannavaro and Emerson from Juventus, although in the latter's case, it did not have much of a happy ending.
  
• Cristiano Ronaldo: His name is mentioned in connection with every major European club pretty much every week, although As did manage to trick his mother into posing with a Real Madrid shirt and say her son had always wanted to play for the club.
  
• De la Red: His agent has stated that Real will exercise their 4.5 million euro buy-back clause with Getafe in the summer, presumably with a view to selling him on for a profit elsewhere.
  
• Javi García: He has the same agent as De la Red, and the story is the same, although the club involved is Osasuna.

In terms of those leaving the club, elconfidencial claims there is a "blacklist" of players who will be put up for sale in the summer. This includes Dudek, Salgado, Metzelder, Cannavaro, Diarra, Baptista, Saviola and Soldado. I'd be surprised if both Cannavaro and Metzelder leave, as this would leave the centre of defence rather short of players, even if Garay was signed to replace one of them. Also, from a performance perspective, Cannavaro has had a solid if not brilliant season (regardless of his detractors) and Metzelder has been blighted by injury, so Schuster may give him a chance if he recovers and starts the preseason well. On the striker front, both Saviola and Soldado have been massively underused, so it's almost a given that if clubs are found to take them they will leave.

elconfidencial also claims that an additional four players will be loaned out to let them gain additional experience: Marcelo, Gago, Higuaín and Drenthe. I'm skeptical about this; I think one or at the most two may leave, but not all four.

Sport would have us believe that it is Ruud van Nistelrooy's dream to be a top scorer at each of Europe's main leagues, and thus he is eyeing a move to Italy (more specifically AC Milan) while he can still cut it at the top level. Though the report was published on April 1st, I suspect this is more of a flight of fancy than a April Fool's story (especially since the Spanish "celebrate" this in December).

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Magnificent Seven

The league championship, while not quite sown up yet, is slowly wending its way to the trophy cabinet in the Bernabéu museum. Real Madrid took full advantage of Barcelona's late draw in Sevilla on Saturday night to stretch their lead to an impressive eight points. For the seven goals, these are seven keys to last night's "festivities":

1. Valladolid's defence: brave? foolhardy? suicidal? They played right into Real's hands with a defensive line pushed so far forward that the local midfielders, especially Guti, picked them off at will. Not one of the Valladolid back four picked up a booking all night. 'Nuff said.


2. The mercurial midfielder himself, Guti, had a dream of a game (though he was allowed to play, rather than hindered, by the opposition), finding the perfect pass time and again, scoring two exquisite goals (OK, one was a bit of a fluke) and provising three assists.


3. Raul's nose for goal is till there. Forced to play further up front due to Van Nistelrooy's injury, the captain scored a signature goal to open up his tally, and picked up his second by converting a penalty. Valladolid is now the league club he has scored most goals against: his 2 on Sunday night contributing to a grand total of 14.


4. Robben's speed and versatility have not been adversely affected by all his injuries. He started off on the left wing, but looked equally comfortable on the right when Robinho had to go off injured and Drenthe was brought on. His goal will have given him some confidence.


5. The Bernabéu is proving to be an invincible fortress; this game was Real's eighteenth consecutive league win (11 of them this season). The fans are not the most vociferous or passionate, but the players seem to be very comfortable. Contrast this with the situation just over a year ago with just four wins in eight games at home.


6. Baptista's strength, playing just behind Raúl (in Raúl's usual position), showed once again why he's a player that has a place in this Real Madrid squad. He harried and fought, was brought down for a penalty and his enthusiasm when given an opportunity should be an inspiration to those who are struggling to get into the side.


7. Bernd' Schuster's team choice, with seven players injured, produced a balanced side that made the most of its virtues (interestingly, Valladolid had a comparable number of shots on goal tto Real's, but look at the difference in effectiveness). In a curious piece of trivia, Schuster himself was on the scoring sheet for Real Madrid in a 7-0 demolition of Castellón back in 1990.

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Codes of Conduct

When Robinho and Baptista returned several hours late to Madrid following Brazil's 5-0 thumping of Ecuador, they missed training and were excluded from the squad that lost the first league match of the season to Espanyol. Following reports that Robinho particularly had been involved in some "wild partying" on the night following the game, the club launched an enquiry and the two face some heavy fines. But is this because they were late, or because of the alleged late-night antics?

Following the players' return, Baptista explained that the delay was due to problems with air traffic, and apologised for not informing the club of their status. Assuming that this is true (why wouldn't you phone in if you know you're going to be late for work?), then surely the players should not face a particularly heavy rebuke for circumstances outside their control, even if informing the club should have been the first thing they did.

However, it seems the club is keen to be seen to be cracking down on incidents of misconduct precisely because they recently issued guidelines on proper conduct to the whole squad. There is a whole argument to be had here about whether this is something that employers can enforce when employees are not representing the organisation. Personally, I don't care what players do in their leisure time as long as it's not illegal and it does not affect their performance on the pitch. I don't buy the whole 'role model for youngsters' argument. They don't have to be likeable, just do their job.

But the curious thing here is that, after huffing and puffing on the weekend about leaving the Brazilians out of the squad, Bernd Schuster has been at pains to make Robinho feel all warm and fuzzy at Real Madrid, with statements like "he arrived at the club at a very difficult time, when the team wasn't playing well and to be viewed as some kind of saviour put too much pressure on him. He's a player that needs to feel happy; we need to take pressure and responsibility off him. He can make something happen in a second and that is what we want him to show. We still haven't seen the true Robinho".

How long does he need? He's been playing for his country since 2003, was in the World Cup squad last year and finished as top scorer in the Copa América earlier this year. If he's not performing as Bernd Schuster wants him to, maybe he should be allowed to go to as many parties as he wants and who cares about codes of conduct?

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Dilemma over Diarra

Mahamadou Diarra captained Mali to a 2-0 victory away to Togo on the weekend, ensuring the national side's qualification for next year's African Cup of Nations in Ghana. The competition, which runs from the 20th of January to the 10th of February will leave Real Madrid without their key defensive midfielder for at least the whole of January, given that players have to be available to join their national sides 15 days before the start of official competitions. During that time, Real Madrid will play nine games, a number that could increase if Mali qualify for the latter stages of the competition.

This is not the first time there's been a clash of fixtures between club and country, although last time FIFA ruled in favour of Real Madrid to ensure Diarra was present (and crucially scored) in league championship decider against Mallorca. This time, despite the protestations of some club presidents, country will win over club, and Real Madrid finds itself with a big problem in midfield.

Schuster, has included Diarra in his rotations policy, mostly, I suspect, because the player could not train as hard as normal during the month of Ramadan (13 September - 11 October). However, his replacement, Fernando Gago, has struggled to be as effective in his defensive coverage (not helped by the fact that there is little assistance from the rest of the midfield).

Hence, Real Madrid is already reported as either scouring the winter transfer window for an alternative or 'repurposing' another player in the squad. The departure of Emerson and De la Red in the summer, means that this could be one of Drenthe (still unsettled), Baptista (not defensive enough) or Sergio Ramos (not a natural midfielder).

Diarra himself narrowly avoided injury in the Togo - Mali qualifier, where the crowd invaded the pitch at the end of the game and assaulted the Mali squad with bottles and knives. His countrymen Kanouté, who plays for Sevilla, and Sidibé (Stoke City) were less fortunate and subsequently needed medical assistance African players in Spain have also been in the news recently due to the Spanish Federation ratifying the 2000 Cotonou agreement and granting citizens of 79 African, Caribbean and Pacific states the same working rights as EU citizens (as long as they are working legally in Spain).

You can also read this, and other articles, over at Real Madrid Online

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TV or not TV

The Media wars that have been affecting Spanish League football this season intensified last night over the broadcasting rights for the Real Madrid - Betis match. Two rival media companies: Sogecable and Mediapro are currently in dispute over who has the right to show certain matches. Sogecable maintains that that Mediapro must first accept a contract on joint football rights signed by the two groups in 2006 and pay Sogecable a pending fine of around 70 million euros. Once Mediapro accepts these conditions, Sogecable said it will renew the broadcast of a television signal for the producer's use. Mediapro claims that the contract is no longer valid and denies that it owes Sogecable any fees. The latest salvo in this war ended up with the game being shown on Sogecable's pay per view channel, rather than on a free-to-air channel.

Real Madrid is caught in the middle of this dispute because it signed a deal with Mediapro last November for all its broadcasting rights until the 2012-2013 season. However, it has a still-current contract with Sogecable until the end of this season and is therefore legally bound to abide by its decisions on how matches are broadcast. To this effect, the club issued a communiqué yesterday deploring the current dispute, announcing that it had allowed both sets of TV cameras into the stadium in expectation of an agreement being reached and claiming that it had no choice but to comply with their contractual obligations to Sogecable.

The plot thickens because this match had been billed as the one free-to-air game that Spaniards have guaranteed by law (21/1997, if you must know) per round of the league. As the game was broadcast on PPV, this meant that no game was broadcast for free and the law has been broken. Real Madrid are probably unlikely to face any legal proceedings as they allowed both sets of cameras onto the stadium and it was Sogecable's insistence that they had the rights to the game that prevented it from being broadcast by Mediapro on their La Sexta channel. Sogecable's argument is likely to centre aruond the fact that they proposed other games for the free-to-air slot and it was Mediapro's intransigence that meant no games were broadcast. It's getting uglier by the day and will likely end up in the courts, as the stakes are very high for both sides.

The match result? 2-0 for Real, and very tedious it was too, so those who paid to watch it must feel even more disappointed. The only highlight, other than the fact that Real stay top was Julio Baptista's impressive overhead kick for the second goal. Let's hope he gets a few more minutes this season.

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Baptista fails to impress at Arsenal

If Julio Baptista does not adapt to football in the Premiership, he could find himself on the plan back to Madrid in five months' time. By extension, this could mean that José Antonio Reyes, who could not wait to leave London to get back to Spain, may find himself in the unenviable situation of having to eat his words and go back to Highbury.

An unlikely turn of events, perhaps, but Baptista has made just nine appearances for Arsenal after a hamstring problem and has found it tough to adapt to English football. He was recently given a run-out against Sheffield United and proceeded to pick up an ankle injury as the Gunners went down 1-0, their first loss to this side in the league for 33 years. Just before the game, Wenger alluded in typical cryptic fashion to Baptista's need to prove himself: "He has a great attitude and is very strong mentally. I like him as a player but he has not yet had the opportunities to show how good he is. He has a lot to prove in the next few months." Wenger admitted he is close to making his mind up. "I am leaning more one way than the other. But I will not say which way."

Baptista himself recently said he does not think he would have much chance in Capello's Real: I can imagine myself playing at Arsenal for several seasons," said Baptista. "Real is a very different team to the one I left. I don't know if my exit had anything to do with Fabio Capello, but he would have to change his system if I was to play in his team."

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