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Fabio Coentrao, Portugal and Benfica's exciting young wing back (and long-time Mourinho favorite) is in Madrid right now trying to force some resolution to his signing. According to Marca.com, As.com, and other sources, Coentrao had been acting out recently during Benfica's summer workouts, and this unexpected departure for the Spanish capital suggests that something is in the works.

This is an exciting turn of events for Real Madrid, because in the past few days sources close to the negotiations suggested that Chelsea had jumped in on the negotiations, and had offered close to 30 million euros for the winger.

While the operation hasn't been finalized yet, all signs point to Coentrao signing for los blancos within the next few hours. No deal has been reached as of 17:00 EST (23:00 in Madrid), so the operation may be postponed until tomorrow.

We're BACK! While Josh gets nice and tan on the beach in South Africa (it's winter there), I've invited a extra-special guest host to help with a mega wrap-up pod. My dad, Jacques Lezra, hosts with me today, and break down the season, and talk everything from transfers, to Barça's tactics, to Mourinho's institutional clout.

Oh, and this is our 100th post! Thanks to everyone who has helped keep this site going, and we're really excited to approach this next season, the transfer season, and everything that Real Madrid has to offer. We're also very excited to move to our new home over at SBNation next week--probably on Tuesday night, so make sure to check www.managingmadrid.com on Tuesday and Wednesday!

Álvaro Morata, via realmadrid.com

So this probably won't be as funny, intriguing, or as totally nonsensical as my last "Gabe Lezra's Top 10 Real madrid Transfer Rumors" piece, because, unfortunately, this one is based mainly on facts--and not some total nonsense I heard from my bartender last night.

The Good News: The very highly-regarded (and very sought after) canterano and striker (and don't forget the winner of the extremely prestigious "Raúl Gonzalez Blanco Award for Best Youth Team Player") for Real Madrid B, Álvaro Morata has signed an extension with los blancos through the 2015 season. This should ensure that Madrid won't let another top-notch talent like Juan Mata (who's currently on Valencia but, according to some sources, is being courted by Barcelona), slip through our fingers.

Morata is a tall, athletic young striker, capable of scoring with his head and his feet; because of this, Florentino and Mourinho (suggestions for a good nickname for those two anyone?) thought it necessary to lock him down. While he might not get an immediate shot at the big leagues, keeping him in the wings for a while makes sense: despite his enormous talent, he needs to develop and mature as a player, and isn't quite ready to start for los blancos. 


The Bad News: According to MARCA, Fabio Coentrao, Benfica's (and Portugal's) highly sought-after left back, is still stuck in a sort of limbo with Madrid: because Florentino hasn't reached an agreement to sell any of the current players on the market (Lass Diarra in particular), Madrid is experiencing a cash-flow problem. Coentrao is aggravated (as he should be) that his future hasn't been settled yet, and is looking to move the deal forward as quickly as possible; unfortunately, this has allowed other teams--namely Chelsea--to sneak in on the bidding.

Fabio Coentrao, via Marca.com

Never fear, though, because I'm pretty sure Fabio really wants to play for Mourinho (and vice versa), so this will eventually work itself out. Let's just hope it happens soon.

Also, on the sort-of-bad-news-but-maybe-good-in-the-long-run side of things, Neymar's club has decided that they will "not negotiate," and that he's "non-transferrable." Maybe this is a ploy to drive up his asking price... but it might not be, especially because his agent recently said that "it's unlikely Neymar will play in Europe this year."

Again, this might actually be a good thing. While Neymar is no doubt a world-class talent, I actually see a lot more Robinho than Ronaldo in him: he seems much more of a high-risk/high-reward type of player than, for example, el Kun.

But really, does Madrid need either of those players (Neymar or el Kun) at all?

Hey all, so this is the first in a series of transfer-season stories: each week (at least once, depending on the pace of the rumors) we'll round up the top 10 Real Madrid related transfer rumors. We'll do our best to cite our sources, even though some of them might look like this:

"Real Madrid to make huge splash for Ibrahimovic! 60 Million Euros and up!" --Some dude I met in a bar last night. 


So, without further adieu, here are this weeks Top 10 Real Madrid Transfer Rumors:

Mourinho and his stalker, Villas-Boas. via Marca.com

1. Kun Agüero Close to Signing for Juve. Marca.com attributes this shocking piece of information to "Italian sources." If true, this is too bad for Madrid--I like the way the young Argentine plays. 
2. Neymar "only wants to play in Madrid," according to Dani Alves. While this might sound like good news, Dani Alves is a notorious liar, so take this at face value. 
3. Neymar "won't come to Europe for at least another year," according to his agent. This seems like a trick to try to drive up his asking price. I don't buy it for one second.
4. Neymar "wants to play the Club World Cup for Santos," according to various sources. I buy this, but it might mean risking injury and driving up his price if he has a good competition. 
5. Real Madrid "ahead" in the race for Coulibaly, a young phenom. Who the hell knows if this is true--I don't even know what "ahead" means in this case.
6. My buddy told me that Madrid is thinking about selling Benzema. It sounds like BS to me. 
7. BUT, Madrid "is negotiating for Kaká," according to various sources, and Marca is reporting that both AC Milan and Inter are interested in buying the Brazilian midfielder's contract. But for 30 Million, no more. Seems like a big loss for Madrid. 
8. According to Fernando Gago, "Kun Agüero would be a great player for Madrid." I'm glad Gago agrees with me; unfortunately, I still think Gago should go play on some other team. 
9. This isn't a rumor exactly, but more like something I wish: as River Plate went to "la B" in Argentina, it looks like some of their talent might be available on the cheap. Madrid should consider looking into their center midfielder, 19-year-old Argentine Erik Lamela. He looked very good in the matches I saw. 
10. Apparently Chelsea wants to buy every single player Real Madrid wants to buy, according to various sources. In other news, Chelsea's new coach, Manuel Villas-Boas wants to be Mourinho--but not in a cute "he's my idol" kind of way, but more in a "creepy stalker wear his skin like a suit" kind of way. Too far?

We'll be back soon with another installment of "Gabe Lezra's Favorite Random Real Madrid Rumors" soon.

Well, Madridistas, we here at Managing Madrid hope you are enjoying the summer!  As one of the off-years from the World Cup and Euros, 2011 leaves us with little to talk about except the rather slow transfer market, although we will try to get some content up.


In the meantime, our more cerebral readers will enjoy this in-depth analysis of Real Madrid's financial situation and our ability to meet the new Financial Fair Play (FFP) guidelines.  These new UEFA rules, if you haven't been paying attention, are designed to improve the financial situation of Europe's debt-ridden clubs and reduce their dependence on the largesse of owners.  Having come into effect on June 1st, the regulations state that from now until 2014, clubs may post an aggregate loss of €45m, which can be subsidized by owners only in the form of permanent investment in shares.  From 2014 to 2017, the total permitted loss will drop to €30m.  If clubs fail to meet these guidelines by 2013-2014, they will be banned from UEFA competitions such as the Champions League and Europa League, which are incredibly lucrative and prestigious, beginning in 2014-2015.  


The Swiss Rambler, an accountant with a keen interest in football economics, breaks down in exquisite detail Real Madrid's remarkably healthy financials and compares them to our rivals, discussing our ability to meet the FFP goals in the future.  Despite our enormous outlay on transfer fees over the last five seasons, given our record profits (only Arsenal made more in pre-tax profits and that was distorted by property sales from the land under their old stadium) we should have no problem adapting to the rules.


Real Madrid actually stands to benefit immensely from FFP, which the Swiss Rambler does not discuss, because we already spend within our means.  Our revenue is so immense that our spending, while outlandish in absolute terms, is relatively restrained.  Our wages are well within UEFA's guidelines and even their 50% recommendation as a percentage of revenue.  Other clubs, however, are not so fortunate financially.  Barcelona is operating at a heavy loss and will have to rein in transfer spending, while the nouveau riche or those looking to reinforce significantly - clubs such as Manchester City, Chelsea, or Málaga and Racing Santander closer to home in the first group, and Manchester United, Juventus, Liverpool and so on in the second - will have a very difficult time catching up to Real Madrid. 

C/O globalfootballdatabase.com

Nuri Sahin, the youngest player ever to play in the Bundesliga (he debuted back in 2005, at 16), will join Real Madrid after completing two eye-opening campaigns in a row for the German side Borussia Dortmund. He has scored 6 goals in 30 league matches for the black-and-yellow squad, and completed 8 assists; he currently has  8 goals, and 13 assists, in 40 total matches this season.

He has been an absolute sensation in the Bundesliga over the last two years, as he has begun to grow into his prodigious talents: at 21 years old, the only way to go is up for this young German-born Turkish prodigy.

With this signing, Madrid adds to its' growing (and very successful) arsenal of Germans with Turkish heritage--including Mesut Özil and Sami Khedira. If Sahin plays anything like either of his countrymen, then he will certainly find a very special place with los blancos.

This signing also represents Madrid's transfer policy since Mourinho: bring in young, talented, and relatively inexpensive players (Sahin cost 6 million Euros), and try to create the right combination that will gel on the pitch. So far, this has been a ringing success--with Özil and Ángel di María fast becoming superstars, and Sergio Canales waiting in the wings, Madrid seems to be stacking a midfield-of-the-future, much like Josh and I predicted at the beginning of the year.

It's also good to see Mourinho getting started on the summer signings: the sooner we get the roster nailed down, the sooner the players can start to gel together.

C/O Directe.cat

Well, this is odd! The CNN article on the rally of Clásicos seems to have taken off a bit in Spain, with various Catalan newspapers reacting to the article, and even *GASP* quoting your's truly:

D'altra banda, la cadena també entrevista l'editor del club de fans del Madrid 'managingmadrid.com', Gabe Lezra, que assegura que pels madrilistes, 'el partit no és només una confrontació entre dos eterns rivals, sinó que es tracta de guanyar un argument sobre el país en sí'. 'En molts sentits, els fans dels Madrid veuen aquests partits com un argument entremaliat sobre la manera d'entendre el país com un tot', afegeix Gabe Lezra.

Dude! It's weird because it's almost like Spanish, but it's not, you know? In all seriousness, I find it pretty flattering that 1) I got my words translated (weird), and 2) I apparently represent "CNN," because the title of the piece says that "CNN thinks..." Surreal.

In slightly less odd news, that article I did with Sebastian over at Barcablaugranes.com ran, but it was more of an interview of me (the title is "Entering the mind of a Madridista"). Enjoy some highlights--I didn't mince my words, and said my part, and they treated me with a lot of respect. A really pleasant experience in all!

What do you think of Real Madrid's tactics and formation?

Gabe Lezra: Madrid's strategy in the three games against Barcelona over the last few weeks (1-1 in the Liga, 1-0 in the Copa final, 0-2 in the Champions League home leg), has had mixed results; because it's a strategy that justifies itself based on winning--a defensive strategy aimed to curb the other team's offensive explosiveness, frustrate, and only then run devastating counter attacks--these mixed results are indicative of Madrid's performance on the whole. That is, if the team had won (or at least drawn) every game, then the strategy would be fine--but they didn't.

So I feel mixed about it. While I do enjoy watching a well organized defense repel attack after attack, frustrating the opponent to the point of aggravation, the strategy is only fun to watch when it works (pretty obvious, I know). If you're going to base your entire scheme on winning, then you have to win. Overall, though, I think it has been successful (the Copa win pretty much validates the structure), but not hugely, crazy-amazing successful.



Do you think Mourinho's post-match comments were justified?

Gabe Lezra: Not really. But he's a loose cannon, and will jump at anything he sees as an injustice. The man mixes emotion and cold calculation better than any coach I've seen, and in this case he went a little too far on the side of emotion--he was riding the post-match wave and seemed to get a little caught up in the moment. While there were some legitimate arguments to make, his over-the-top attacks dampened the actual situation and polarized the two sides: not necessary.



Do you think Pepe's playing style makes him more prone to controversial refereeing?

Gabe Lezra: Yes. He's a physical defender, who's large, lanky, and throws his body around. He's also incredibly talented, fast, and a bit insane (remember that time he flipped and kicked the stuffing out of that player?), so he has a reputation as a game changer--referees feel OK showing cards to Pepe because his reputation and his style suggest that he's a game-changing player (both positively and negatively).

His reputation and style make it more likely that he will be shown cards, both correctly and incorrectly; because of his history, referees will tend to err on the side of being too stringent, like in the case of the Dani Alves red card in the most recent match. The action itself didn't warrant a red card, but Pepe's past behavior and physical style primed the referee to look for hard, cynical tackles.



What would you have done differently if you had been coaching either team?

Gabe Lezra: For Real Madrid, I would have made the defense push a higher line: Barcelona got very tight and nervous in the first half of the Copa final when Madrid pressured all over the pitch. Rather than sticking with such a deep defensive line, Madrid should have been rushing out to pressure in Barcelona's territory, forcing errors and general frustration.

For FC Barcelona, I would have instructed them to attack more down the flanks, and focused on trying to get balls over (not between) Madrid's defenders. Madrid is weakest on the sides of the defense, and didn't have particularly fast center backs; the key to playing a team that clogs the middle is to try to spread the field, and attack over the top from the sides with vertical runs on aerial through-balls. The other point I would emphasize would be not to get frustrated. If Barcelona could remain cool and composed against Madrid's defense, then they could limit Madrid's chances offensively by not pushing anything that wasn't there--that is, not trying through balls that Madrid's midfield and defenders will just intercept.



Do you think either team was more or less guilty of pressuring the referee?

Gabe Lezra: No. Both teams were terrible about this; the game gave a bad name to Spanish football. In a match-up that was supposed to pit the two best Spanish sides on a continental stage, both teams embarrassed themselves with their antics (both during and after the game). That's all I want to say about this.



Given Real Madrid's history with defensive coaches--they fired Fabio Capello after winning the Liga in 2006-2007--do you think Mourinho's style will affect the length of his tenure as manager?

Gabe Lezra: I think that the cases (Capello and Mourinho) are very different. For one, Capello was brought in after a title drought that saw teams like Valencia in the ascendency, while Mourinho was brought in at the height of the Guardiola-era FC Barcelona. While Capello was asked to win a title, Mourinho was asked to win a title and check the dominance of Barcelona. In this case, it really was more important that Real Madrid win and ask questions later; for Capello, the main point was to bring Madrid back to prominence internationally. Capello didn't really achieve his goals; Mourinho actually has (to some extent). As long as Mourinho keeps winning--and keeps Madrid at the top of conversations internationally--then he'll keep his job.

Another difference is in the fan's reception of the two coaches: even after Madrid won the 2006-2007 Liga, fans were still divided about whether they wanted Fabio Capello to stay. This season, after Madrid has had a relatively successful campaign (similar, really), fans are much more in favor of Mourinho staying. I think that speaks volumes.

C/O Marca.com

It wasn't the dream ending that many of us Madridistas had hoped for. But it wasn't a catastrophe: Real Madrid drew 1-1 at the Nou Camp in the second leg of the Champions League, a result that allowed Barcelona to advance to the final against Manchester United.

While the aggregate score of the two legs favored Barca, 3-1, there is a lot more than that to take away from this tie: for Madrid, there is a sense of injustice, and in my mind, a vindication of Mourinho's strategy. Had los blancos escaped the Barnabéu with a 0-0 draw--which looked like the correct result after 60 minutes of play (that is, until CDM/CB Pepe was unjustly ejected)--today's 1-1 draw would have seen them through to the final.

But we're not here to talk about last week's game: we rehashed that in our last post, and don't feel like reliving it. Today's game was much more indicative of where these two teams stand--when the cards are on the metaphorical table, and when Madrid manages to finally end a match with 11 men on the pitch, these two teams are very very even. Despite the possession and shot statistics (Barcelona dominated both), the final score, the thing that counts, was 1-1. Madrid defended well, protected the goal, and executed one perfect, lethal, counter-attack.

While there was some controversy today, especially when referee Fran De Bleeckere unfairly disallowed a fair goal by Higuaín for a non-existant "foul" (and by that I mean Cristiano Ronaldo getting tripped and accidentally clipping Mascherano's back heel with his back), this isn't what we should take away from the match. What we as Madridistas should see is a team that knows how to fight, a team that can play with this so highly-lauded and FIFA-beloved Barcelona team.

So as we approach the tail end of our season, there are a lot of things to be happy about, and a lot of things to be hopeful about. We can be happy that this young, exciting team has begun to gel; that Kaká is finally looking like the player we wanted to see all along; that Karim Benzema has had such a good year; that Mesut Özil and Angel di María may have been some of the best signings the front office has made in years; that Mourinho motivated this team to fight in every match; and that the youngest team in the league fought tooth and nail with the best Barcelona side of all time, and won the Copa del Rey.

The "foul" that disallowed Higuaín's goal. Marca.com

Sure, we can feel angry that this tie was heavily influenced by the referees, that Dani Alves should get nominated for Best Supporting Actor, that out of the five games Madrid has played against Barcelona, they ended the game with 11 men only once. But that's not the point. This is the time of year for reflection, for looking to the positives, and to the things we need to improve.

In the coming days I'll do a piece or two on the season as a whole, and probably on what talent we should bring in in the off season. For now, let's all take a moment to reflect on this season, to see the good with the bad, where we went right next to where we went wrong. And let's look to the future with excitement and hope for this young team.