Ricardo Kaká: A Player Worth Keeping

As it currently stands, Ricardo Kaká has only three goals and two assists for Real Madrid this season in all competitions. With almost two underachieving and injury plagued seasons at the Bernabéu, after his record-breaking transfer from Milan, many Madrid supporters have understandably become impatient.

Of course, they are not alone as rumors are swirling almost every day about where the former FIFA World Player of the Year may end up next season. Everyone in football is aware that Florentino Pérez would not hesitate a second to sell him to the highest bidder should he not start performing before the transfer window opens.

What is not being talked about often are the reasons why Madrid should hold on to the Brazilian for another season. While any player should expect to be shown the door for underperforming at Madrid, Kaká should be the exception.

Kaká is still a young player; he has battled a difficult injury that he has had to come back from. Usually knee injuries like his take upwards of a year to fully heal mentally and physically. Being the athlete that he is, he has as good a chance as any to return to his former Ballon d'Or form.

Another strong argument why to consider keeping Kaká, is the €65 million fee that was paid out to acquire the star. If Madrid were to sell him to a club such as Manchester City or AC Milan, its very likely Madrid would have to take an unprecedented financial hit. In fact, this may be the foremost deterring factor that may keep Florentino Pérez from selling the player.

Nonetheless, if a club were to throw in a player that José Mourinho highly covets into a deal, such as Santos’ Neymar, it would be impossible to envision a scenario where Kaká remains in the Spanish capital.

Clubs who are lining up for his services seem to realize, just as those who’ve watched his passing and scoring skills throughout the years have, Kaká has a lot of upside. The prospect of a fully healthy Kaká who is making passes like the assist he made to Cristiano Ronaldo during the Champions League clash against Tottenham, while scoring goals of his own, is the best case for making him a player worth keeping.