Madridista Corner: What Does the Season Hold For Real Madrid?

(Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)

Welcome to Madridista Corner, where the Madridistas/analysts of Bleacher Report in this edition they will discuss: Real Madrid's activity in the transfer market, returning Canteranos, how the season will shape out for Real Madrid, and much more stuff.

Before beginning I would like to thank Ann Gry, Khalid Khan, Josh Zeitlin, Muffakham Shaheriyar, and Rami Jber for participating

Here goes the first edition of Madridista Corner.

• New Signings and Their Effect
  

With Real Madrid making all the headlines due to the new signings and the fact that they spent €250 million on them, do you think the new signings can play together?

Ann Gry:

All of them are professionals, they know how important team-work is. However now we have quite a lot of individuals, so if they won't kill each other it means they can cooperate.

Khalid Khan:

Theoretically they should, but it has to be seen if they can actually gel together. But it does seem that newcomers are motivated and want to perform as a team. We have to acknowledge that many are megastars and managing their egos is going to be a tough task. Megastars want to be in the spotlight and the team to be arranged around them.

Josh Zeitlin:

I absolutely think they can play together. Xabi Alonso is the key player for me, he will get the team working as a unit. He is the conductor of the symphony, as it were. The one concern for me is that our bench is somewhat too deep and that the players may get restless if the first eleven are not rotated often; This could harm the team morale, which is a crucial variable when you make such drastic squad changes.

Muffakham Shaheriyar:

Looking at them we can slot the big five together you know—Albiol, Ronaldo, Kaka Alonso and Arbeloa. Granero has potential but realistically he would be limited to the substitute role for most matches.

Rami Jber:

Yes, they will play quit well together but they need time to blend, and we shouldn’t rush them. They will deliver for us the magic we all expecting

Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, or Xabi Alonso: Who do you think will have the greatest impact?

Ann Gry:

I think it's going to be Xabi Alonso with his work in midfield, Benzema looks sharp in attack too. I think Xabi will have the majority of assists and Karim (if not Pipita) will score the most number of goals for Los Blancos.

Khalid Khan:

I think Cristiano Ronaldo will have the greatest impact because he has a good work ethic and he really is working very hard, not that the others aren't. Karim is doing good. And Xabi's arrived late, so I can't say much about him.

Josh Zeitlin:

As I've said, I think it will be Xabi Alonso. Whether he will get the recognition or not is unclear. What Real Madrid lacked in the Calderón era was an ability to retain possession in midfield—this was the root of the defensive issues over the last few seasons.

Besides passing, this is what Xabi Alonso does best—winning and keeping the ball, and redistributing it in clever ways to his teammates. He will be the engine of this team.

Muffakham Shaheriyar:

Xabi Alonso, his passing will be the key for the creation of goals.

Rami Jber:

My pick would be Kaka and Xabi. They are blending smoothly and doing well from day one, I think Benzema still young, and CR9 will need a little more time to regain his full potentials.

What should be done with Higuain?

Ann Gry:

He should be given a place in the first eleven 24/7! Pipita has all we need in young players—motivation, skills, team spirit, and a hunger for victories. Raul is getting older, and the pair of Gonzalo and Karim together for 90 minutes can be very dangerous.

Khalid Khan:

That is really tough now, he can be tried on the wings but there are many other candidates for that position already.

Josh Zeitlin:

Higuaín is unfortunate—with the arrival of Benzema and the resurgence of Raul as well as the danger of Ruud van Nistelrooy recovering from his knee injury his chances of regular play will be limited, just as he is blossoming into a world-class striker.

Still, he will get playing time, as Benzema may need a period of adjustment (though his pre-season form suggests otherwise) and Raul and Van Nistelrooy cannot be expected to play more than 30 games a season.

Next year, Raul will start to play significantly less, I should think, and Van Nistelrooy will most likely leave the club. He should therefore stay and wait, as he has become the most likely successor to Raul at second striker, and his partnership with Negredo and Benzema could be stunning over the next decade.

Muffakham Shaheriyar:

Well this is a sticky issue, he could be used as a substitute for Raul or as a striker if we play a 4-4-2.

Rami Jber:

Well he actually deserves to be a starter, that's for sure. But Benzema cost a lot, and as long as Raul is still doing good job, he will be on the bench. So what we should do is rotate our attack so everyone gets time to play, especially him. He simply deserves it.

Has Manuel Pellegrini made any improvements to the team or not?

Ann Gry:

Can't say that looking at pre-season games, but he has eliminated players he didn't need, so I guess that's an improvement.

Khalid Khan:

He is experimenting a lot with players and formations and it will be too soon to judge his performance. Nothing is going to happen fast and easy.

Josh Zeitlin:

Absolutely, Mijatovic and Calderón made a lot of inappropriate and expensive purchases over the last few years and the team was in dire straits. Pellegrini has improved the team in every way, giving us the width, creativity, passing range, defensive solidity and ability to retain possession—that the team has quite frankly lacked over the last few seasons, and truthfully since Makelele left for Chelsea.

Each acquisition has been stellar in my book, though my one regret is not snaring David Villa from Valencia when we had the chance but Benzema is a top, top striker.

Muffakham Shaheriyar:

Well, that was handled by Perez.

Rami Jber:

That would be a big yes, much different from the past two years, we can notice the balance in attack and defense, and he is managing the superstars' egos in a good way, I guess he is doing a good job so far.

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