Balboa to Benfica

Real Madrid midfielder Javier Balboa has signed for Benfica for the next 4 seasons in a deal reportedly worth around 4.5 million euros (plus 50% of any transfer fees if the players is sold on). The 23 year old is the first in the 2007-2008 squad to leave the club this summer (Cassano did leave for Sampdoria last May, but he had already spent a season there on loan) and he joins former Real Madrid player Quique Sánchez Flores' new project at the Portuguese club. Quique knew Balboa during his stint as one of Real's youth managers some years ago.

Balboa had asked Real Madrid to let him go, given the little playing time he had in the past season (10 games: 5 League, 3 Cup, 2 Champions League), in which hecame in as a substitute in all but one of them, but still managed to score two goals. Though he generally plays on the right wing, he can be useful on either side. All In White wish him luck in his career

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Robinho Voted Player of the Year

The readers of All In White have voted, and their verdict is that Robinho has been this season's most valuable Real Madrid player. The results, based on the total votes collected throughout the season on a month by month basis, show that Robinho received 65 out of a total of 394 votes cast, or about 1 in 6. Despite this, recent reports have linked Robinho with a move to either Chelsea or Manchester United, the latter as a possible player exchange for Cristiano Ronaldo.

The top three Real Madrid players were:

• Robinho - 65 votes
  
• Casillas - 62 votes
  
• Raúl - 53 votes

Robinho was also the only player in the whole squad to receive at least one vote every month between September 2007 and May 2008, showing that he is consistently well regarded by voters, even though his form dipped in the run up to the end of the season. Robinho also won the monthly accolade twice during the season: in November and March. The Player of the Month awards are listed below:

• September 2007 - Sneijder
  
• October 2007 - Raúl
  
• November 2007 - Robinho
  
• December 2007 - Van Nistelrooy
  
• January 2008 - Casillas
  
• February 2008 - Guti
  
• March 2008 - Robinho
  
• April 2008 - Raúl
  
• May 2008 - Higuaín

Of the 25 players in the squad, only three received no votes: Salgado (no surprise there), Codina (who only played one game all season) and Balboa (whose chances were more restricted in the second half of the season, when more votes were cast). The results for the whole squad were:

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Within striking distance

The best Racing side in living memory went into their clash with Real Madrid on Sunday knowing that a win would lift them up to fourth in the table and into Champions League territory. Atlético's surprise defeat at home to Betis on Saturday motivated the Cantabrian side to come out all guns blazing, much like one of those Atlantic gales that regularly hit Santander. Real, on the other hand, knew that Barcelona had failed to subdue Espanyol the previous day, and that Villareal had just beaten Valladolid 2-0, leaving their pursuers 8 and 7 points behind respectively before they'd kicked a ball.

Despite Racing's initial onslaught, it was Real who would score first when Raúl got the merest of touches on a goal-bound Robinho cross. The captain, who is almost certain to get a break from international duties this summer despite being the second-highest Spanish goalscorer in the league, increased his personal tally against Racing to thirteen goals, making it his second-favourite team to score against, after Valladolid.

The other element of Real's success on the night was the excellent work from the back four, in particular Heinze, who is giving Sneijder a run for his money as Real's most valuable signing of the season. The Argentine was not only exemplary in his defensive duties but also linked up well with Sneijder to relieve the pressure when most needed. Added to the back four, the excellent performances of Gago and Diarra meant that Racing could only reach Casillas's area with aerial balls from set plays.

The only fly in the ointment was that, despite Raúl's early goal, the forward line was not as effective as it could have been, and a couple of clear chances, one each from Robinho and Robben, went begging. The Brazilian is not showing the sparkling form of earlier in the season (is it fitness, or is it confidence?) and was substituted by Higuaín in the second half. Robben, while showing an excellent level of fitness, also struggled to make an impact, and Schuster decided to bring Balboa on for a few minutes at the end of the game.

The youngster played his part in Higuaín's goal, which, coming as it did in the third minute of injury time against an exhausted Racing side, was probably too much reward for Real's efforts. However, this now means that Real Madrid can mathematically win their thirty-first league title next week at home to Athletic Bilbao if both Barcelona and Villareal fail to win.

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