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In 2002 Real Madrid celebrated their centenary. A 100 years of existence and success recognised in a thrilling sequence of non-stop parties, theme parks and various sporting and religious events. The biggest one, however, was Real Madrid’s exhibition match against the “rest of the World XI”. But, in truth, the only real stars of the show were the players in white: Ronaldo, Zinedine Zidane, Roberto Carlos, Figo, Iker Casillas, and the list just goes on and on. Their captain, Fernando Hierro exclaimed: “We have five or six, or more, of the best 10 players in the world – magnificent footballers, a spectacle”, and it was very much true. Or, at least it seemed that way at first.
Those players later on became known as the Galacticos – the biggest stardom the world has ever seen all in one place and wearing the same colours. This “star model” of conducting business, as Damian Hughes called it, became Real’s norm. Buying stars rather than grooming them was their way, and it hasn’t changed much over the years. Their latest purchases do attest to that, as it’s not even July yet and the likes of Eden Hazard, Luka Jović and Ferland Mendy have already kissed the Kings’ badge, pledging their allegiance to don Perez and co.
But as much as this is what we usually expect from Real, it was also a necessity this time. The team endured a horrendous campaign last season, finishing third in La Liga and being handed a footballing lesson by Ajax in the Champions League, on top of crashing out of the Copa del Rey at the hands of their eternal Catalan rivals Barcelona. Still, you have to hand it to them, though. Perez was quick to react. First, he recalled Zidane from his short holiday and then got down to business with the transfer market. Fast forward a couple of months and their rebuild project is all but completed.
So far they have acquired six highly valued players; a mix of experience and youth, offence and defence, flashy skills and pragmatic approach. More importantly, they have addressed their biggest voids in the team and skeletons in the closet, which, due to the fact they choose to ignore them, haunted them for the entirety of last season. Apart from the aforementioned additions, they also purchased Rodrygo Goes, Eder Militao and most recently, Takefusa Kubo, Barcelona’s prized Japanese wunderkind, who was a cherry on top of a business well-concluded.
But we’ve seen them do this before and it’s not a guaranteed success. The star model requires a lot of money, chemistry and, probably most important of all, humility. If you lack those, chances are you’re going down regardless of your Hazards and Jovićs. Heck, in 2001/02 they finished third in the league and between 2003 and 2006, they hired and fired five coaches while winning absolutely nothing bar one “lousy” Spanish Supercup that’s worth as much as sunglasses on a rainy day. Big names don’t guarantee big results. So why should these 2019 Galacticos be any different?
The difference between now and 2002 is that this Real Madrid team is experiencing one of their lowest periods in a long while. Even though they have just made six exciting signings, only one truly feels like a Galactico signing, with the rest are either banking on the future or snapping up talents from their rivals. This is also something we’ve come to be used to Madrid doing, but only this time, they have seemingly made all the right choices. These signings, regardless of how big or small they were, felt needed and justified.
They lost Cristiano Ronaldo, and they lack a natural threat on the left? In comes Eden Hazard. Marcelo is slowly getting on and they need someone younger and talented to take over? Meet Ferland Mendy. Karim Benzema is firing on all fronts, but we lack the squad depth and a quality replacement if push comes to shove? No worries, Luka Jović is here. In short, this rebuild very much feels like a rebuild and not just another stacking of star-names on top of each other and hoping it might work out.
The other difference is that these players are more down to earth than what Los Blancos usually have in their ranks. Sure, this might change rapidly once they finally don the white shirt for a match, but so far, it seems like they are not the type of players who quickly get overpowered by fame and greed. Just take Hazard for example. That’s the most modest Galactico if I’ve seen one. Will he remain that way? Only time will tell, but the early signs are quite good for once. And it’s not just the players. Even the upper hierarchy and the whole vibe the club seem to send out is somehow more… Modest, if such a word even exists in their vocabulary.
But it is true, and Real Madrid seem to have learned a lesson and are ready to get back on the throne. They have a young squad that is ready to prove themselves and have finally addressed their core problems. Usually, there’s never an easy or a quick fix when father time stomps all over your group of players, no matter how talented they are, but the Whites have certainly made the right first moves and exciting times are sure to follow.
We can’t say for sure if it will work out perfectly or not, but you know what they say: “Get up, adjust your crown and keep going”. Maybe that’s exactly what the Kings are now doing.