Portuguese club S.L. Benfica recently announced two pre-season matches. On August 9th, Dutch side Feyenoord will travel to the Estádio da Luz. On August 15th, Inter Milan will travel to the Estádio da Luz to take on Benfica in the newly created Eusébio Cup.
In other Benfica news, the club signed two youth players - winger Andre Carvalhas and midfielder Miguel Rosa to professional contracts. Carvalhas and Rosa are signed through 2011.
The club also signed 23-year-old winger Javier Balboa formerly of Real Madrid.
Balboa moving to S.L. Benfica in 2008-2009.
Image details: Real Madrid v D.C. United served by picapp.com
Showing posts with label Real Madrid. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Real Madrid. Show all posts
Monday, June 30, 2008
Benfica Add Pre-Season Matches with Inter and Feyenoord
Friday, June 20, 2008
Cristiano Ronaldo Speaks About His Dream
Top U.K. journalist Guillem Balague spoke with world superstar Cristiano Ronaldo following Portugal's exit from Euro 2008.
You can find the interview at Balague's new website found here in the interview section.
Cristiano Ronaldo will be more than likely starring in La Liga next season.
Image details: Portugal v Germany - Euro 2008 Quarter Final served by picapp.com
Friday, June 13, 2008
Are Release Clauses Killing The Game?
By: Jack Gaughan
Soccer City FC
It’s pre-season in European Football, with all the big leagues such as the English Premiership, La Liga and Serie A taking their annual break prior to the new season. Obviously this is the period where managers throughout the globe really earn their salt, in building, tweaking, or keeping together squads. But do the players themselves occupy too much power in the transfer process, as we look specifically at the release clause.
So, what is a release clause? Perhaps best described as a division of a contract, a release clause allows a player to move from his club to another once a certain amount of money in transfer fees is triggered. For example, English Championship side Blackpool last season acquired Ireland international Wes Hoolahan, but such was the players’ ambition, that the contract could only be agreed with a £250k release clause. This has enabled bigger, more attractive clubs, such as Norwich City and Charlton Athletic to trigger this release clause and talk to the player, thus making a move away from Bloomfield Road imminent it would seem for the clubs’ best player.
The release clause now seems to be a necessary evil in the game, in order to attract the better players to your club. Unfashionable teams like the aforementioned Blackpool don’t seem to have any room to manoeuvre with these players, who seem to hold all the aces. Drawing on the above example, Hoolahan is definitely worth in excess of £750k, which proves how much money The Seasiders have missed out on when they do eventually sell the midfielder.
It’s not just about attracting players to a club though, release clauses are even needed to keep players at their existing teams! Take Steven Fletcher of Scottish club Hibernian as a prime example; he is rumoured to have a £500k release clause in his contract which would enable him to move to a club (namely Spanish powerhouse Real Madrid) for about ten times under his market value! Without this clause in his contract, Fletcher might have moved on a free transfer when his original contract expired, so Hibs have been held to ransom in order to keep their player for an extra couple of years. Despite being in the UEFA Cup, Hibernian simply don’t have the financial capacity to even contemplate offering Fletcher a deal to rival Madrid’s.
The essence of the release clause is – in a nutshell – making the rich richer and the poor poorer in world football. Looking at the examples here, the monetary gap between the market value of the player and his release clause isn’t actually an awful lot in the grand scheme of things – certainly a pittance to the teams who want to sign the players. However, that £500k gap to Blackpool, and £4.5m gap to Hibernian are absolutely massive amounts of money to them, which they could reinvest into the squad. Instead, they’re left with minimal amounts, which in their respective leagues are as previously stated, a pittance. Selling these players definitely has a knock-on effect when wanting to sign new players, with people questioning the ambition of the club, and a domino effect could even occur, with more players wanting to leave.
The competitive nature of the game is ebbing away with rules such as the release clause; gone are the days of smaller clubs like Ipswich Town conquering Europe on an undersized budget and the like, for the simple reason that their best players would be poached long before Europe was even a possibility. Although top scorer Paul Mariner went to Arsenal in the late 80’s, this was after his 31st birthday, and The Tractor Boys saw his best years at Portman Road, and not Highbury. As a comparison, after their smaller exploits into Europe earlier this decade, Town had their best players picked off, with Keiron Dyer, Matt Holland, Matteo Serini and Darren Ambrose to name but a few all leaving the club to pastures new. Although I don’t know the ins and outs of those transfer dealings, I’d be very surprised if the players didn’t have some sort of release clause. For the record, Ipswich have been in administration since, and are in the second flight of English football – a heavy comedown from six years ago when they beat Inter Milan in the UEFA Cup.
So, is the release clause good for the game? It’s definitely good for the individual player, who can quickly jump up the career ladder with a small release clause, but bad for the clubs, who don’t have a leg to stand on if a bigger team wants their prized assets. I’m not suggesting we should go back to the state of the game in the 1950’s, where the club held all the power, with a salary cap etc, but we need to strike a happy medium, otherwise Football as we know it will deteriorate even further.
Hoolahan's time with The Seasiders may be ending thanks to his release clause.
Image details: Tottenham Hotspur v Blackpool - Carling Cup served by picapp.com
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Euro 2008: Player Video Tour 2
Soccer City FC continues to showcase several players who will be looked upon to carry their national teams in Austria and Switzerland. Videos via various members at YouTube. Click on the player's name to view their video.
Goalkeeper Jens Lehman (Germany) - "38 year old keeper’s last outing for the national team. Jens has a lot to prove if he wants to continue his club career."
Striker: Miroslav Klose (Germany) - "The former Werder Bremen, now Bayern Munich man will have to show that World Cup form again."
Right Back: Sergio Ramos (Spain) - "As one of the most creative and energetic full backs, his contribution down the right flank will be very important in a team lacking any natural right winger."
Goalkeeper: Iker Casillas (Spain) - "The current Spanish number one had another consistent season, topping La Liga in both saves made and fewest goals conceded, as well as making UEFA's Team of the Year. Spain's progress in the tournament could come down to how well Casillas does."
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Euro 2008 Preview: Spain
By: Juan Iglesias
Special to Soccer City FC
Player Spotlights:
Goalkeeper: Iker Casillas - The current Spanish number one had another consistent season, topping La Liga in both saves made and fewest goals conceded, as well as making UEFA's Team of the Year. Spain's progress in the tournament could come down to how well Casillas does.
Centre Back: Carles Puyol - Coming off a disappointing season affected by injury, Puyol is nevertheless the only top class central defender in the squad. He will be crucial in organizing the weakest part of the team.
Right Back: Sergio Ramos - As one of the most creative and energetic full backs, his contribution down the right flank will be very important in a team lacking any natural right winger.
Forward: Fernando Torres - He will start either as the leading forward or the only one. Despite being the most talented Spanish striker, he has been overshadowed at times in the national team by David Villa. The time has come for Torres to fulfill his potential.
Group D Opponents
Russia - Four years ago Spain won this match 1-0, and a similar result can be expected against the the weakest team in group D.
Sweden - Solid team, with quality individuals. This should be a close game. In the qualifiers, Sweden won 2-0 at home, while Spain won 3-0 in the return.
Greece - With their defensive system, they are ideally suited to contain Spain and will be their toughest opponent in the group stage. A draw is likely here.
Tactical Questions
While Spain possess an abundance of quality midfielders such as Iniesta, Fàbregas, Xavi and Senna, finding the best way of utilising them has proved problematic for aging Spanish coach Luis Aragonés. This will be one of Spain's biggest problems, coping with his fondness of switching formations and line-ups. However, in recent games at least, something resembling a flat 4-4-2 has been used, which will be important in competing with physically stronger teams.
Prediction
Reaching the quarterfinal is achievable, the question is whether further progress can be made. Whichever team emerges this "Group of Death" will prove a formidable opponent.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Euro 2008: Player Video Tour 1
With roughly 24 days until Euro 2008, Soccer City FC showcases several players who will be looked upon to carry their national teams in Austria and Switzerland. Zlatan Ibrahimović (Sweden), Wesley Sneijder (Netherlands), and Cristian Chivu (Romania). The three videos via various members at YouTube.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
La Liga/Premiership - An Odd League Title Connection
A very odd yet interesting bit of statistical data here. Just the type of stuff we love at Soccer City FC. Thank you kindly to Avon who pointed me towards this information.
Champions in La Liga and the Premiership over the last several years...
- 2000-2001 Real Madrid & Manchester United
- 2001-2002 Valencia & Arsenal
- 2002-2003 Real Madrid & Manchester United
- 2003-2004 Valencia & Arsenal
- 2004-2005 Barcelona & Chelsea
- 20005-2006 Barcelona & Chelsea
- 2006-2007 Real Madrid & Manchester United
- 2007-2008 Real Madrid & Manchester United
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
The Weekend XI: February 9-10
We are once again back to profiling club soccer after last week's inaugural World Cup Qualifier Edition.
And guess who is back? USA's Michael Bradley continues his run at Heerenveen. Real Madrid has two players in this week’s edition also. It happens.
The newest edition is found below at SoccerCityFC's Corner Kicks.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
