Jack87 news today, asianbookie Despite some high-profile moves in the Barcelona transfer market, Real Madrid are hoping to kick off La Liga this weekend with a solid summer that will set them up for a successful defence of the Spanish title.
Madrid won against Eintracht Frankfurt in the UEFA Super Cup today as they aim for another trophy-laden run under Carlo Ancelotti after last season’s league and Champions League double bk8 battle.
The Santiago Bernabeu has not changed dramatically and there is no sign of a superstar to bolster the attack after Kylian Mbappe turned them down to sign a new contract with Paris Saint-Germain.
Yet there were no major departures either, with the influence of Gareth Bale, Isco and Marcelo plummeting before they were all released.
That means Karim Benzema and Luka Modric, who turns 37 in September, will still be hugely influential.
Ancelotti can also look forward to the influence of players like Vinicius – whose goal was won in the Champions League final against Liverpool in May – and that Rodrigo and Eduardo Camavinga will join forces this season will increase.
Two important signings have arrived.
French midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni, 22, arrived from Monaco for a fee of up to 100 million euros ($102 million), while 29-year-old German centre-back Antonio Rudiger joined for free from Chelsea.
“I believe we have two players who are the best in the world,” Ancelotti told UEFA.
“Their quality improves the team’s physical and technical abilities.”
Real have a 13-point lead over Barcelona and it would have been better had the Catalans not made huge strides in the second half of last season.
Xavi Hernandez has already made a huge impact as Camp Nou coach, and a slew of recruits, led by Robert Lewandowski, could help them close the gap on their arch-rivals.
Leeds United winger Rafinha and AC Milan midfielder Frank Casey have also joined, while the signings of Jules Kunde and Andreas Christensen should improve the defence considerably.
The problem is that, by the beginning of the week, Barca were still unable to register their new players because they had not raised enough funds to comply with the spending restrictions imposed on clubs by La Liga.
This comes despite the Barcelona board selling assets to Socios for 100 million euros, bk8 malaysia including a 25 percent stake in Barca Studios, which manages the club’s digital business and audiovisual production.
25% of their domestic TV rights were sold to US investment fund Sixth Street for 400 million euros over 25 years.
The deals come on top of a sponsorship deal with Spotify, with reports yesterday that Barcelona will sell another 25% of the Barça studio to an investment fund for 100 million euros to meet La Liga needs.
The club has also been pressuring midfielder Frenkie de Jong to leave to deal with his salary.
The long-term consequences of these deals could be worrying for a club with a reported €1.3bn debt, but if they can sign up new players they could also be a real force to be reckoned with.
“We generated a lot of hopeful expectations. We also had a lot of hope,” admitted Harvey. “Our goal this year is to win titles and play great football.”
If Barcelona can’t close the gap on Real Madrid, it’s unlikely anyone else, as Atletico Madrid don’t look much better than last year, when they finished third.
Luis Suarez has returned to his native Uruguay and Antoine Griezmann’s form is uncertain, although Axel Witsel strengthens their midfield, Argentina international Navel Mo Lina adds to the strength of the right-back.
On top of that, they also have Diego Simeone.
Sevilla finished fourth last season, securing Champions League qualification at the expense of city rivals Real Betis, who won the Copa del Rey.
While Sevilla signed Isco, they lost two excellent centre-backs, with Kunde leaving and Diego Carlos heading to Aston Villa.
Notably, the latter would prefer to join a mid-tier Premier League club rather than stay in the Champions League.
This reflects the appeal of English football, with Valencia’s top scorer Goncalo Guedes going to Wolverhampton Wanderers last season.
Seven years later, bk8 asianbookie Saudi-owned Almeria is back in La Liga, with Real Valladolid and Girona the other newly promoted teams.
