The hundred points bolstered by a hundred and twenty-two goals pretty much affirmed everything that was both said and unsaid in this past season that many would describe as “greatly successful”. I, for one, believe that the recently culminated season was just another stepping-stone towards greater glory in the club’s illustrious history.
More importantly though, it marked the shift of dominance from the ‘Catalans’ to the ‘Los Blancos’.
The Madridistas would have a lot more to look forward to this season, with the Los Blancos promising more trophies to add to their illustrious cabinet. One thing though, that the whole footballing world would have their eyes fixed on who would be the club’s pursuits in this summer’s transfer market. It is but assured that Jose Mourinho would leave no stone unturned to strengthen the Galacticos’ bid to clinch their 10th European Cup of all time. One can expect Real Madrid’s name to pop up more than often in the transfer market, this season being no different.
There have been numerous speculations linking many a talented players to Madrid. One name however, that keeps popping up is a highly rated, creative Croat, Luka Modric. In the 36 games that he has started in a fairly quiet season for him, the Spurs’ playmaker notched up about five goals and four assists for the team. As proven time and time again, statistics aren’t everything and the various clubs in his pursuit certainly bolster the claim. Reports have also been rife with rumors of the likes of Gonzalo Higuain and Kaka being thrown in, in order to procure the services of equally talented strikers with the likes of Sergio Aguero and Robin Van Persie coming into the picture. Both these forwards have terrorized defenders this season with 23 and 36 goals respectively in all competitions. Another star that has emerged to be on Mourinho’s list for this season is the highly rated Spanish midfielder David Silva. Silva, this season, tore apart the best defensive lines in the Premier league notching up a mammoth 19 assists and 8 goals. As many would argue, he deserves most of the credit for Manchester City’s Premier League triumph this season.
Even one, if not all the targets mentioned above, would greatly strengthen the already explosive firepower that Madrid possess. Ronaldo, Benzema and Higuain alone combined to garner about 118 goals in all competitions this season. One can only fathom what the likes of David Silva or Robin Van Persie would bring to this club. It would make them but near impossible to beat. Mourinho is yet to cement the likes of Nuri Sahin and Raphael Verane in his squad. These youngsters though could prove to be more than capable of taking over in case of any injury crisis. Jose Callejón is one individual though, who managed to shine amongst the likes of Ronaldo, Benzema and Higuain with 13 goals to his name in all competitions this season. Ricardo Kaká had a relatively quiet season after his comeback from an injury that ruled him out for quite a while. However, after starting just 25 games this season, he managed to notch up 8 goals and 12 assists throughout all competitions proving that he’s still got quite a lot left in him. The return of Angel Di Maria would only add to the arsenal of attacking options available to ‘The Special One’. Jose Mourinho would have quite a fight on his hands when it comes to the squad selection in the forthcoming season with many players placing their bid for a spot in his lineup.
The never-ending feud over the superiority of Messi and Ronaldo comes forth yet again with the first bout being the Spanish Super Cup on August 23rd at Camp Nou.
With both teams raring to have a go at each other, the bragging rights are up for grabs. This clasico would set the stage for a scorcher of a season. Which way is the season going to tilt? Well, there’s just one way to find out.