Real Madrid News
Real Madrid have everything ready for a ‘Galactico’ signing next summer, Mbappe, Haaland on the agenda
The Galacticos era started at Real Madrid in 2000 when club president Florentino Perez put into practice a plan to attract elite players in order to improve the team’s on-field performance and appeal to a global audience.
While the emphasis has recently shifted towards developing young prospects, Real Madrid continue to be regarded as Europe’s melting pot of elite players.
Real Madrid are in the market for a Galactico
According to AS, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland have entered Madrid’s crosshairs owing to their improved financial position as they plan for a Galactico signing next summer
A statement signing will likely be in sight, especially after Karim Benzema’s departure to Saudi Arabia. The report details Madrid’s financial strength, with information that indicates a move for a big player is inevitable.
As per the report, Real Madrid possess €128 million euros in cash and €265 million in undrawn credit facilities.
Furthermore, the club has also made room in its wage bill, which allows the club to comply with La Liga’s financial fair play standards.
The Efficiency Ratio, a metric used by the European Club Association (ECA) to assess the financial health of its member clubs, states that a club’s total personnel expenses cannot exceed 70% of its total revenue.
While Madrid’s salary expenditures for the previous season were 72%, in the most recent approved accounts, that number dropped to 54%.
While salary expenditures have decreased, overall revenue has increased by 17%, creating an environment that is more favorable than ever for the arrival of a star player.
Santiago Bernabeu’s renovation will help the club
Furthermore, the new Santiago Bernabeu guarantees the arrival of big-name signings
Not only does the club project its final revenue for this season to be €939 million, but more significantly, it projects revenue from the operation of the stadium to be €317 million, which is nearly €150 million more than what it had been producing.
With the stadium capable of hosting NFL games, famous sporting events, and additional seats, revenues are expected to skyrocket, and all these funds will allow for megastars to be acquired.
As of today, Mbappe and Haaland are the two biggest names on the wishlist, and Real Madrid will be eyeing their potential arrival next summer.
Real Madrid prospect Alexis Ciria will have to wait for his Champions League opportunity despite making a strong impression on Jose Mourinho during pre-season.
The Castilla winger has been left out of Real Madrid’s European squad, but the decision is the consequence of UEFA registration rules rather than a sporting judgment.
According to journalist Arancha Rodriguez (h/t Defensa Central), Ciria was not eligible for Madrid’s List B because he has not been with the club long enough to satisfy UEFA’s requirements.
Registering him would therefore have required Mourinho to include him on the more restrictive List A.
UEFA rules work against Ciria
List B provides clubs with additional flexibility to register young academy players, but being young enough is not sufficient on its own.
Players must also meet requirements concerning how long they have been eligible to represent the club.
Ciria does not meet those conditions because of his limited time at Valdebebas. Real Madrid would therefore have needed to sacrifice a List A position to register him.
With those places required for members of Mourinho’s senior squad, Ciria was ultimately left out.
Real Madrid’s List B instead includes youngsters such as Joan Martinez, Mario Rivas, Thiago Pitarch, Jorge Cestero and Daniel Yanez.
Many of these youngsters made a name for themselves under Mourinho during pre-season and could be used to make up the numbers in the Champions League squad.
They could also get some minutes off the bench, especially against relatively easier opposition, as Jose Mourinho looks to manage first-team minutes.
Mourinho still plans first-team opportunity
Importantly for Ciria, missing the Champions League squad does not appear to reflect a change in Mourinho’s opinion of him.
The youngster impressed during pre-season and is expected to continue spending time around the senior team.
Mourinho intends to give Ciria his official first-team debut during the season. That opportunity will now have to arrive in La Liga or the Copa del Rey.
The Portuguese tactician placed a lot of emphasis on trusting Castilla players during pre-season in the absence of first-team stars.
Ciria was one of the many names who made a name for themselves at Real Madrid during pre-season. He deserves a chance in the first team, and it remains to be seen how Jose plans his development.
