Several have been the signings that have not gone well in the Spanish team in recent years and James Rodriguez is just the most recent case

Leer en español: Real Madrid: ¿Cuáles han sido sus peores movimientos en el mercado?

Real Madrid FC is one of the biggest clubs in the history of football, thanks to the fact that throughout its existence has hired several of the best players that have given the world. However, more than a decade ago the club has had several missteps when it comes to signing great players.

Whether to pay high figures and sell at a low cost, to get rid of great figures who then triumphed in other clubs, or to hire players who did not meet expectations, Real Madrid has had several negative movements in the market of passes of the last years.

Players who triumphed far from Real Madrid

Wesley Sneijder and Arjen Robben arrived at Real Madrid in August 2007 as the main references of Dutch football. The performance of both players was outstanding despite suffering recurrent injuries that led them away from the courts on several occasions. However, Real Madrid revolutionized the market in August 2009, and the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Benzema, and Xabi Alonso left the Dutch players without a place. Sneijder was sold to Inter Milan, where he became champion of the UEFA Champions League just one year later, and Robben emigrated to Bayern Munich, with which he managed to conquer 'La Orejona' in 2013. They both found the glory once they left the club 'merengue'.

The most recent case, of a player who knew how to reconnect with his best level away from Real Madrid, is that of James Rodríguez. The Colombian midfielder left the team 'merengue' because the coach, the legendary French Zinedine Zidane, relegated him from the starting lineup and condemned him to the bench.

James left for Bayern Munich as a loan, and there he was able to win the love of the fans, his teammates, and his new coach, the German Jupp Heynckes. The Colombian has returned to his maximum level and for that reason Bayern Munich will make the purchase option to Real Madrid for 42 million euros, as stated by Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, legend and current general manager of the German club.

Great stars whose level was never the same

Real Madrid is always concerned about signing great players who are at their best level, but there are several cases in which great figures have been diluted once they signed the contract with the Spanish club.

In August 2009, Real Madrid signed one of the players most desired by the white fans: the Brazilian Kaká. The player was in the club for four seasons, got three titles but in none he was a figure, suffered several injuries that took him away from the courts for almost a year and only managed to register 29 goals and 33 assists in 120 games. Real Madrid decided to negotiate with AC Milan the return of Kaká, making it effective in September 2013.

Mesut Ozil, great exponent of German football, signed for Real Madrid in August 2010. In the white club, he played a total of 159 games, scoring 27 goals, giving 73 assists, and getting just three titles. Özil left the club 'merengue' towards the English Arsenal in August 2013, after the great criticism for his irregularity. The midfielder achieved excellent performances against teams called "little", but against the big teams, he never achieved an outstanding participation.

Further back in time is Robinho. The Brazilian player came to Real Madrid in July 2005 as Pelé's successor, but finally he was far from being his worthy heir. Robinho was harshly criticized by the white fans because the midfielder was specialized in making a lot of hooks, feints, and gambetas but rarely came to score a goal. The eternal promise of Brazilian soccer left Real Madrid in September 2008 for Manchester City, leaving a balance of just three titles and only 35 goals in 135 games.

It is undeniable that Real Madrid has had great successes with hiring in several periods of signing, but it is the disappointing transactions that echo the most. Disastrous and unreal transfers such as Drenthe, Faubert, and Gravesen, and great signings that were nothing like those of Michael Owen, Walter Samuel, Cassano, Emerson, Gago, Julio Baptista, Michael Essien, AltIGNORE INTOp, Nuri Şahin, Lass Diarra, and Fábio Coentrão have caused Real Madrid to lose prestige in the passing market.

The club 'merengue' has failed efforts on several occasions when hiring players, and in some cases, it has lost vision when deciding to sell figures whose level explodes when they leave the club.

LatinAmerican Post | Javier Aldana
Translated from “ Real Madrid: ¿Cuáles han sido sus peores movimientos en el mercado?”