By Adrian Musolino
June 12th 2009 @ 2:16am
Related coverage
Galactico spending power shaking up Euro football
Brazil's Kaka fights for the ball with Paraguay's Julio Caceres during a World Cup 2010 qualifying soccer game in Recife, Brazil, Wednesday, June 10, 2009. Brazil won 2-1. AP Photo/Ricardo Moraes
He was destined to be in white. The protracted speculation linking Christiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid finally came to its expected conclusion. The size of the deal was always going to be mammoth.
And with the Portuguese star joining Kaká at the Bernabéu, the European football market is bracing itself for one of the busiest transfer periods on record.
But while Ronaldo’s signing was hardly a surprise, the signing of Kaká was, for some, a bigger disappointment.
Kaká was my final hope, a player I had marked as one to buck the trend of modern football and remain committed to the same club. He had resisted the temptations of money offered by Manchester City and spoke lyrically of his love of AC Milan.
Alas, it was not to be.
It’s a sad irony that the Brazilian’s final game for the Rossoneri should have coincided with the final appearance of club legend and the poster boy for one-club career players.
Since debuting at the age of sixteen, Paolo Maldini hadn’t been tempted away from the San Siro despite offers throughout a career that lasted over two and a half decades.
His is a dying breed.
Ronaldo was never going to be at Old Trafford for long.
Teammates next season, the contrast between Kaká and Ronaldo as people appears stark.
While Kaká appears affable, humble and graceful, Ronaldo has come to typify the modern footballer: spoilt, corruptible and controversial.
And yet, despite this difference, they both succumbed to the same cheque-book.
We shouldn’t begrudge players their right to freedom and to pursue the riches available to them for an obvious talent, but it is always with a tinge of sadness that you see a player like Kaká make such a move.
The second Galactico revolution under returning president Florentino Perez is already producing the same big name, any cost signings, as the first.
The ripple effects will now be widespread.
Agents across the world are bracing themselves for what many pundits are predicting will be one of the most active and expensive off-seasons on record.
With Manchester City now joining the ranks of elite clubs with the spending power of the traditional powerhouses, their cross town rivals in need of a replacement or three for Ronaldo, Real Madrid building the squad of superstars for its renaissance, and the likes of Franck Ribery, Samuel Eto’o, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Gianluigi Buffon, David Villa amongst others considering their fate, the movement across Europe will be immense.
Economic crisis or not, the money floating around the top end of town in European football is mammoth.
Whether the bubble bursts soon remains to be seen.
Season 2009/10 will have a very different look to it.
But the sight of Kaká in a Real shirt will confirm what we should already have known: loyalty in football is, like Maldini, retired.
Money talks the loudest.
Get Australia's best Football opinion emailed daily.
Like this content? Buzz it up!
Free Email updates:
Our daily emails are only sent if there is content for the sport or that author. You can subscribe to multiple daily emails; or get the daily Roar email with all our content in it. We value privacy. More...
(3)
whiskeymac said | June 12th 2009 @ 9:42am | Report comment
fair comment. was expecting something along the lines of the UK press is saying that Real was 500m in debt and needing to get more loans to pay for this ‘adventure”. At least Platini has spoken out about it (and not just at an EPL club for once). theres a line being spruiked that Kaka only left to pay Mialns debt . maybe i am too cynical but this martyr like motive is hardly beleivable – if that was the motive why not go to Man City. (actually plenty of reasons not to go to manchester over madrid but the point being this myth being trotted out is partly bullsh*t).
“We shouldn’t begrudge players their right to freedom and to pursue the riches available to them for an obvious talent…” for me this is it.
“but it is always with a tinge of sadness that you see a player like Kaká make such a move.”
Kaka’s Brazilian. He already made the move once for money (to Milan). Maldini at least was homegrown. Maybe that’s the secret to loyalty? that and money (well i wld need to ask Terry if his lovefor Chelsea is in anyway linked to 135,000 pounds a week) I thought Henry and Viera were the same for Arsenal. Loyal that is to the end. And they were, it’s just their end was when Inter or Barca serenaded them. and to be honest loyalty can be detrimental to palyer if its “blind”. Players need to leave to grow.
So at the end of the day players follow the money and silverware. at least Anelka and Ribery and Robinho were more honest about it. Maldini was unique. in the truest sense of the word – kaka was not the same as him.
Actually thinking more about it i was impressed with players sticking to Juve when they went down (deservedly so) – guys like Nedved, Buffon sticking by the club. prima facie that’s impressive loyalty. In a local sense is there loyalty to be found in the fledgling HAL. Vukovic is the one that springs to mind. CCM stood by him… now will he pursue his claims to leave and develop his career? cant begrudge him if he did.
On the other side of the coin are the clubs themselves loyal? do they really pick up players and employ them for the life of their career? nah. Look at Sterjovski at Derby – let go. how about all the cutting of deadwood at clubs at the end of the season that fans generally support and are deemed necessary? that deadwood has hardly been afforded any loyalty. really at the end of the day this bemoaning of loyalty is a two way street, and i cant begrudge players getting what they can out of anindustry which would happily spit them out if their knees go.
Slippery Jim said | June 12th 2009 @ 2:42pm | Report comment
Dear oh dear, what was it Sir Fergie said only seven months ago? “I wouldn’t sell a virus to that mob [Real Madrid]“.
Good news for Chelsea, though, without the Winky Wonder scoring all of their goals for Man Utd, the league title is assured next season!
whiskeymac said | June 12th 2009 @ 2:54pm | Report comment
good news for everyone in the top 6 i would say. as an arsenal fan hopefully Man Utd will drop down the pecking order.