Is Raul in it for the money?
Monday, 25 May 09, 04:45 AM · Comments (67)
Luis Aragones - the man we need to hire?
This is clearly a silly question, but let us think about it for a minute. Why Rau'l is still playing? If it was for titles, then that would be unlikely since he has won most of them in contrast to Cannavaro who is still chasing the Champions League. However, it could be that Rau'l wants to add more. Nothing wrong about that.
If it was about personal records, he has broken many during the last few years. Heck, he has even passed legend Di Stefano in the number of goals scored in the white shirt. Yet, he might want to add more.
Or..... back to my question, Is he in it for the money? I don't know. I can't figure out why he still wants to play football. It is undeniable that he loves the sport, but there is time for footballers to retire because they can't play on a competitive level. Professional football is not like street football. Many legends realized that, Rau'l hasn't yet. He is earning millions and could still earn more even If he retired. Perez said he'd appoint him as his VP. There would a million ways for Rau'l to make millions of money.
If he was playing just to have a shot at the national team, then it is unlikely he'll be called up again. Spain have won the Euro with a great squad and there is no chance that squad will be changed especially upfront since there is Torres, Villa, and David Silva.
However, the strangest thing is, why coaches such as Schuster and Juande Ramos couldn't take him off? Even when we were playing for nothing against Mallorca last night, Rau'l was there walking like a male model watching Higuain and Van der vaart trying to score with no luck. Even when we were 2-1 and 3-1 down, Juande didn't take him off. He replaced Huntelaar instead. Why? Oh why? What is so special about Rau'l? Granted he is a legend and one of the best strikers on the planet, but for Godsake, he aint perfect anymore.
It has become clear that If we want to succed then Rau'l has to be treated as we treat the other players. If he isn't playing well, then he should be benched. It is unfair that Higuain is on fire, and Rau'l is in a coma, and the Argentine is on the bench. It is unfair that Lass is working his butt-off, and Rau'l with a single goal or trick, takes all the credit for winning the match. It is unfair that Casillas takes all the blame for losing, when Rau'l is acredited for working hard. I could go on and on....
Our hope is our next manager will realizes this or better yet, our beloved Rau'l realizes this and does something about it. But looking at our history, no one has managed to put an end to this? Who will? Wenger, Mourinho, Rafa...etc? I suggest we hire Luis Aragones ;)
Hala Madrid!
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MadridistAli said:Ya i know actually he did great today but this bad attitude of his will cost us...
On Real Madrid Vs Almeria Live, Gago to leave Real Madrid + Pepe to renew his contract
Madridfan_India said:yellow for jersey thing sucks not at all justified according to me....
itz ki... On Real Madrid Vs Almeria Live, Gago to leave Real Madrid + Pepe to renew his contract
TheAngelOfMadrid said:Yup, neither of his yellow cards can be appealed tbh.
On Real Madrid Vs Almeria Live, Gago to leave Real Madrid + Pepe to renew his contract
MadridistAli said:Adam please post the goals i only saw Ramos's goal
On Real Madrid Vs Almeria Live, Gago to leave Real Madrid + Pepe to renew his contract
sleepy101 said:yep, unless we appeal one of the yellows or something and gets approved.
On Real Madrid Vs Almeria Live, Gago to leave Real Madrid + Pepe to renew his contract
67 Madridistas have commented on "Is Raul in it for the money?" · Add yours
Aragonez?
NOOOOO PLEASE NOOOOOOO!!!!!!He couldn't even coach Fenerbache well enough!!!After yesterday's game I think it is obvious that Jurade can't stay in charge anymore...it's his own fault.Since I don't like Wenger,Ancelotti and Rafa I'd go for 1)Mourinho 2)Blanc 3)An ex-player who is new at coaching
Reply to Danniel:
Trust me, you wanna get rid of Rau'l? Aragones is your friend
madrid needs god because right now there just playing awful i wish they could of kept cannvaro
haha im sure messi will miss him in la liga. 
Dude ur a lone ranger on this raul issue .....the only ones dat can bench raul is us the fans...,until the fans love him ,until he continues to sell tickets....not mourinho ,not wenger will be able to bench him.
Why is Raul still playing? I do not think it is for the money. If that was the case you could ask the same of Ryan Giggs or Filipo Inzaghi.
I think from his point of view, playing for Real Madrid is the only thinks of doing at the moment, and cannot imagine doing anything else.
But the question is does he still deserved to be played? My answer to that is a big fat YES. However I agree that he is playing far too much, and must be rotated more often. I dont think Huntelaar is quite the man yet to replace him permanently and that Raul probably has the ability to score more crucial goals.
Next season, one between Raul and RVN should be played, and should be supported by one between Huntelaar and Higuain, with Higuain given preference because of the season he has had.
I like RaulGonzalez. No reason.
I like !!! He is my Hero. OK?
I admire what he has done for Real. He is truly one of Madrid's legends but he has to realize that he is past his prime and with Higuain and Huntelaar in the waiting he must know that his time is coming to an end. Even Capello could not bench him so I think the next coach should have the independence to bench him when he is not producing. It's time for Higuain Super Sub to become Higuain Super Starter. I can only think of one coach that could possibly get away with benching Raul and that is Mourihno.
We had a coach who left who knew how to treat Raul...
His name was Fabio cappello. Its pretty obvious that the real madrid Administration is the reason why Raul plays... The coaches are obligated or they're sacked.... DUUUUUUUUUUuuuuuuuuuuh
Reply to helmet_09:
I think the only ones responsible for Raul still being in the team are the local Madrid fans
! If it was for the international fans of Real Madrid, Raul would be part of history by now!
Just becuz he is a local lad from Madrid, ppl there are very emotional about him and don't want to see him go! It's high time they open their eyes to the fact that Raul has ceased to be an asset for Real Madrid, and has instead become a liability. The entire city of Madrid is responsible for Raul's larger than life stature and his gigantic ego.They treat him(and Casillas) like royalty.
Left 4 everyone else outside of Madrid, we'd be happy to see his back any day.
Madrid citizens -WAKE UP DUDES!
Reply to Danniel:
i agree, but i'd rather blanc 1st, an ex player 2nd, then mourinho..
Reply to Adambader:
It's simple...I DON'T want to get rid of Raul.I don't want him to be a starter but come on....suggesting he wants to play to earn money and questioning why does he want to play football?
You just have to admit that people see something in him that you,some R.Madrid fans and Aragonez simply don't.I honestly don't beleive any of the things being suggested about the administration because if it was so Perez wouldn't want him...but he does want him!
raul can still play. its the team. something is not clicking between them. As for the money issue, sure it plays part, he's not like joseba who is going to play for free next season for Athletik.
Raul is awesome. Aragonez did make the right decision by booting Raul. I agree with you.
raul is a icon!
hey guys.... i have been wondering this for quite some time now.... why do u guys want to get rid of raul so much? i think that, at most, he should be benched when he has a goal draught but he shud definitely be in the squad at all times..... he is just 31 years old and we have seen players play till at least 33-34 and moreover he has been performing at a decent standard.... he has 23 goals this season and he had 24 last season.... he is our joint top scorer this season and he rarely gets injured... also, he is the leader of our team and injects team spirit and motivation into our squad.... as a striker, his job is to score goals and he has done that quite well this year by scoring more than 20 goals.... i do not disagree that raul shud be marked as an equal to all other players and that he should be benched at times but seriously i feel that he is quite essential to our squad unless we buy a new better striker.... come on guys be a little rational why would u want to kick a 20-goals-a-season striker out of your team really?
HALA MADRID! Long play El Capitan!
Reply to losblancos_dxb:
Totally agree.
yes raul can be a part of the team ...but real madrid need a different dimension up front for the up coming season that all .....the answer is not raul any more .....
Just to update us Madridistas on couple of Florentino signings.. News outs of England says that Xabi Alonso has handed in a tranfer request and Florentino is trying to close the deal with liverpool for about 20 million.. Other news RVN has an agreement with Galatasaray to join them.. David Silva is also a priority of Perez.. That is the latest rumors,speculation etcc..
There is big news coming out that Bayern are considering swapping Ribery for Sneijder.. and Zidane has clearly said he wants to bring Ribery.. I like Sneijder as he is still young only 24.. I would offer Bayern Metzelder, and VDV plus cash for Ribery.. Id like to keep Sneijder
Reply to Madridista4:
If Perez doesn't like Sneijder....then they might aswell swap them.
Reply to Madridista4:
exactly, compared with VDV, sneijder has more space to improve. He's been improving game by game. I'd also rather to swap Metzeler and vdv for ribery and lahm. xabi alonso will be a decent signing with this price regarding to his age. he is the best replacement of F.gago.
For Raul, I've been tired of seeing him running over the pitch all the time. He is the legend and i won't doubt his love and loyality toward real madrid team. However, he is making himself looked bad now by attempting to score more goal in order to break some meaningless record for himself. seriously, if he takes Real Madrid as the prior concern, he should've accepted the fact that he is not the Raul he used to be anymore and should constantly sit on the bench. i will respect him so much if he is willing to be the Del Piero or Ryan Giggs of us.
Raul SHOULD NOT be in the future plan of real madrid. If we want to establish a champion winning team. we must need a reform. The shitty records of this season pretty much tells us the importance of a reform. And Raul shouldn't be an obstacle of building up a new real madrid. he should be benched constantly if he decides not to retire. i believe everyone will still respect him as a legend if he is willing to sacrifize some personal goal. He is still the icon and i still hope that he will be the one who hold the 10th CL cup for us. But he shouldn't be looked as important as he used to be in the squad tactically. it's not just the matter of whether he should start or not, it matters if an old player like raul is looked as a big part of a team.
Reply to DynastyofRealMadrid:
he could just be some ADDITIONAL for the new team.
Reply to DynastyofRealMadrid:
yeah we should keep Sneijder because he is a fantastic player when healthy as we seen last season and in Euro 2008 but he also can use both feet very well .. VDV is only a left footer..
Also Florentino Perez is expected to announce his project this Thursday
Reply to Madridista4:
i always optimistically think Sneijder and Ribery can become our "xavi and iniesta" somedayz. i have some expectation bw these two players. However, everything is uncertain. Ribery is not our player yet and i won't believe on any rumor cuz they've been so annoying. I will keep on waiting for those offical announcements. but anywayz, thx for sharing ur news.
Eduardo Garcia the other candiate battling Florentino Perez has withdrew his claim to the court today and therefore if he does not get any endorsement by May 31st then Florentino Perez will officialy become President of Real Madrid June 1st meaning no elections will take place.. I believe this is good news because Perez will win anyways and this just speeds up everything 2 weeks earlier so he can get the club moving to a right direction faster.. Also Florentino Perez will anounce his project on Thursday.. HALA MADRID!!!
Reply to Madridista4:
nice!! this can speed up the process. We can't do anything until one becomes the new president. it gives Perez more time to work on those targets.
STOP THE PRESS... HOT NEWS...
Raul has just been shortlisted for the 2009 Golden Foot awards by Gazzetta Dello Sport - the Italian sports daily!
I don't know what the Italians are on... have they finally gone mad?
Reply to Mexi-Basque:
Funniest thing I've read all year...
Loads of Barsa unsurprisingly still go around saying how good Raul really is, and how bad Madrid fans are for criticising him. I wonder why?
come onn!!!! raul plays for breaking records not
making money and even we the fans wants to watch raul playing and see him breaking records its that simple
Reply to raul_the_legend:
wake up!! I agree that Raul is a legend, just like wut ur name says, however, even though he is not playing for money, i still don't want to see him being a starter anymore. as a fan, i don't want to see him breaking any record. I just want Real Madrid can win more trophies. as long as we can win the CL, any record he breaks is totally meaningless. Look at his form, he wasn't even existed in the last few games. he can't catch up with games in such intensed level. He deserves more respect if he is willing to sacrifize his playing time. We need to face the truth. once we can get some better strikers. HE needs to be a bench player, no doubt about it. I am really tired of seeing such meaningless record.
just simply ask urself a question, do those records have anything to do with winning the CL titles. I don't think so. Raul is not the Raul he used to be. His form is obviously not suitable for him to play in high level games like CL. I still clap for him for his good plays but i just can't stand for seeing him playing everying single minute.
Reply to whatever:
i dunno the condition in Madrid, so please anyone tell me, are local madrid fans that fanatic, until they have to close their eyes, and kept clapping their hands together for Raul when that guy missed his 9th or 10th chance in a match? i could understand why Adam suggesting Aragones, because that old grandpa is the only one who can withstand the pressure from spanish press, and stick to his policy to keep raul out of the team. how could you guarantee that Mourinho won't end up doing the same mistake like Schuster or Juande? I would be even more pessimistic if the one who take charge is a younger coach, Raul himself might give him that pressure. everyone has ALREADY acknowledge his great skill and contributions to the club, but if this condition is keep on going, trust me, when Raul retired, there will be more people that laughing than crying, HALA MADRID!!!!
Reply to Madridista4:
in a way,he is much similar to Seedorf.ferocious shooting boots and a good passing ability.
and if De La Red comes back next season,we'll have our very own "Pirlo and Seedorf" combination in midfield which i think is the best pairing in the centre of the field.
you have no idea what your on about, first of its Raul not Rau'l and second Raul brings leadership to the team in a way that you could not understand. A lot of the games won in the last 8 years were thanks to Raul, he makes the team stronger by being the leader and a top scorer for the team on most years. No coach takes him off when they are loosing, reason for this is that the team tends to play better when he is on the pitch. Please think about what you write before badmouthing one of the best players in la Liga of all times and now.
Reply to Dan:
Are U crazy or what?
Raul is a blood sucking leech!!!
Do u watch Real Madrid's games or what???
It doesn't take a ROCKET SCIENTIST to see that Raul has become a problem for Madrid!!!
Raul plz take ur DARK SHADOW out of Madrid.
Reply to raul sucks:
its a surprise that Raul is being blame for everything nowadays !
He's not just in it for the money, clearly.
I see alot of people on this forum losing their objectivity over Raul on a regular basis. He doesn't always deserve the priase he gets, but on this forum I think alot of the critism is not founded on his pitch performance overall. More I think some dislike him because of a percieved political hold he has over the club - I remain unconvinced by this.
I would concede he has been overused and often played in a role that does not suit him, I would conceed he is no longer up to the very high standard required of him. I would prefer to see someone else come in to challenge his position.
I also do think that Raul suffers from critism because alot of his work off the ball goes unoticed. I don't consider myself a football expert, but I think to the "TV highlights observer" Raul can look ineffective while actually off the ball he is changing the game and making an impact.
Certainly the last few games his performance has bee poor - but he's not the only one by a long way.
On the plus side, I still think he is one of the best finishers at the club, if you can get the ball to his feet, or if he can arrive at the box at the right moment there is no one better to finish in my mind - although VN is a definite candidate, but that's it.
Hes also very unselfish, which is a serious problem amongst Higuain, Robben, Sniejder and Marcelo.
His problems: He lacks pace and ability to dribble the ball at speed however, so I think his runs can be picked up by average defenders that would have struggled with him several years ago.
With the squad as it is now, presonally, I would have played him most weeks, either off the bench or in starting lineup, but in order to be more competitive in europe i think we need younger and (most importantly) faster players up front.
Reply to EvoLtc:
well said, very objective@!!!
Reply to EvoLtc:
I'm gonna talk about myself and say that the reason I'm criticizing Rau'l is that he doesn't deserve to be a STARTER. Higuain and Huntelaar deserve more chances and they certainly don't disappoint.
I agree that Rau'l is one of the best finishers but so are Huntelaar and Van Nistelrooy. The problem though is they can't finish what hasn't started. We don't have a playmaker (except Robben) who can feed those players.
adambader do we even have a playmaker role in our squad noo.2 wingers, 2 center mid and 2 strikers. does any one remembers josh mourinho's
formation we could use it
iker
ramos pepe garay marcelo
lass/Gago
VDV sniejder
robben higuain
Hunter/van/raul
forget about the last part where it says those name
Reply to Adambader:
I understand people's frustration with Raul, especially if people have genuinely come to beleieve that he calls the shots, pulls the polictical strings and stopped Villa from being signed. Personally, I think most of the rumours we hear is bull, but anyway.
The jurys out on Huntelaar for me - he's certainly no VN from what i can see. His main problem is that he doesn't seem to be able to travel with the ball at all (similar to Raul except Raul's problem is pace rather than ability). Still he is a finisher and he can hold it up with his back to goal, he may have potential, but he's no great Madrid player.
Not sure if you want playmakers who pass or creative players who dribble the ball?
Frankly, I think we're missing Robinho, he was often able to provide that spark of creativity and vision like Guti can on a good day when he's not pouting about being kicked in the shin. He added that element of fear in the opposition defense that has all but gone.
Reply to EvoLtc:
I agree mate
Speaking of guti...it seems Perez doesn't want him.I personally I think he's right as he seems to have told Jurade not to choose him for last match.I think this is not professional for a vice-captain and he's acting like a child really.
pellegrinis now the favourite t take over and he is the last hope.Real needs to start early and get all the players they need in time.Why they choose to prolong the elections is a mystery.like someone said we may be staunch supporters of real madrid but whatever happens in the spanish capital is also a mystery its now getting to seven years madrid still failing to be a top top team they used to be because there is too much politics that goes on that distant suppoters like us do not undrestand and know.which is very disappointing when you love the club like many do.
It does not need rocket science to fix this but i madrid they never seem to realise that they are failing on each season for the past six years and noone seems to want to correct that its always rumours and politics .
Its like a government that does nothing to its people but continue to ruin the country.
Solely based on what you said Adam, if Raul is in it for the money he wouldn't have rejected the 10 million a season offer from Man City.
Reply to S:
he's afraid to leave real cause he knows he will not have any power at another club.....sure he will get big bucks but whereas he gets no scolding from the spanish media and real madrid for playing shit, he will be on full blast at another club, people will be quick to call for his head. A lot of negative will be directed towards him whereas in Madrid he is their "god" ....so he stays where he is worshipped.
Reply to S:
That was a rumour spread by Raul and his agent.
Mark Hughes, the city coach denied he had made any move for Raul categorically.
No club wants Raul in its squad. That's a fact!!
Raul should be ashamed of lying to the fans and the press!!!
I HATE RAUL!!! HE IS AN EGO-MANIAC!!!
Reply to rumour mania:
It's amazing how so many ppl still want to hold on to Raul after all the HUMILIATION we have suffered this year. No player is above the team.You got to remember that. The team comes first! So what if he has scored so many goals? That's all in the past now.
Even Barca kicked Ronaldinho out after his poor form! Then what's so special about Ra owl???
Don't even suggest to me that Raowl is better than Ronaldinho!! U'd make me laugh to death! HA HA HA!!!
ronaldinho was there player only but raul he is our captiano ok. in late 90s we won 3 UCL because of raul's goal dumb shit and now show some respect to the legend. i know he is not in form but in some games from no where he comes and takes us to another step
we lost to barca not because of raul it was ramos the coach and off course pepe for kicking the guy for noo reason. hope to see another coach next season with Raul in bench
To whoever is saying we should play with one defensive midfielder/midfielder:
ANY similar formation is good against weak teams but if we want to do well in the champions league...we need more than one defensive midfielder in the starting 11.Barca play Toure and Xavi,Liverpool play Mascherano and Alonso, and i can go on with the rest...if we want to win we need to dominate midfield,an the only way to do so is with two defensive midfielderss...a 4-1-3-2 formation isn't good anymore
Reply to raul_the_legend:
This is stupid.
Respect? What respect can u have for someone who has no interest in THE TEAM. Someone who puts their own personal goals AHEAD OF TEAM OBJECTIVES.
Sorry. I lost respect for the leach a long time ago. The fact is we play with 10 men. And I've learned to accept that fact.
He has become a fat leach gorging himself on the blood of Real Madrid, impossible to shake loose. We're going to have to rip him off... 1... 2... 3...
Reply to S:
You are correct, that's why I said I don't really know. Guess we have to ask him
Reply to Danniel:
totally agree!! more importantly, Xavi also appears to be a playmaker of Barca while he is doing a lot of defensive jobs.
Thank you Adam. I couldn't be more in agreement regarding the Raul issue. I've been saying for months that Huntelaar and Higuain should be the front runners. Although, I do respect Raul and his committment to the team. Its an obvious fact that he can't hang at the highest competetive level anymore. On the other hand, when he scores a hatrick in important games, like in Sevilla, I have to just eat my words. Its really annoying. Point being... Higuain and Huntelaar are a lethal combination. Hopefully we pick up a good center mid (Kaka) that can actually feed them decent balls.
Reply to Adambader:
So if you don't know why did you make this up about Raul?
I mean isn't he being critisized enough?Why do we need to start things up completely from nothing?
Just let him be a super-sub and that's just it...end of story...stop inventing false things about his loyalty towards the club.(I'm not only refering to you Adam)
Reply to Danniel:
You didn't get the point of the article, Daniel. I asked a question which was whether Rau'l is in it for the money or for something else. I tackled every aspect, and said I don't know If he is in it for the money, cos he could make more even If he retired.
You have been reading this blog for a while and you know my stance on the Rau'l issue. I have only been demanding that he be benched. As simple as that.
The cancer needs to be cut out.
How can anyone demand respect for Raul?
How does he show respect for the club?
-By dragging it down out of top level football?
-By sucking the money out of the coffers?
-By halting the careers of other young and talented forwards?
-By disrespecting seasoned pros like Canavaro, and not saluting him in his final Bernabeu appearance - a player who HAS WON MUCH MORE THAN Raul!
He is the only Real Madrid player I have hated. And I believe there are good reasons for that.
Reply to Adambader:
I didn't interpret the post as anti-Raul; a little emotive, but that's OK it generated a good amount of debate.
It also exposed a few of us who need to get out more, or perhaps a little therapy....
Reply to EvoLtc:
Yeah you are quite right in that regard
u have fargot thah raul is a legend and he was one of the best player in europe i thinck thah he deservs respect and that's all
Reply to rumour mania:
Oooo, you mean scoring 18 goals at 32 is poor form. Daaaamn, I must be watching an entirely different game of football with super human footballers.
Seriously, Man City is reputable for going after players with some reputation to build up a cult similar to the ones enjoyed by the big four. But sadly they fail to realize that unless you win things, you cannot establish such a sustainable reputation in the footballing pantheon. So yes, excuse me if I choose to believe the news sources over what Mark Hughes said.
And Raul lied? Seriously? How did you know? How do you know it's not Hughes who is trying to cover up - i mean it'd be pretty embarrassing that a 32 year old past-his-peek striker will rather choose retirement than to play for a club like Man City? Seeing how none of us are in a position to judge who's right and who's wrong, it's best to shut that avenue for good.
The team comes first, yes. Juande Ramos should have had the balls to take him off when he wasn't performing. And by the way, in your own words, no player is above the team. The humiliation is not solely Raul's contribution. If you notice the state the entire make up of the Real Madrid team is in, then I hope you'll realize how stupid your pointless blaming of Raul sounds.
No one's suggesting Raul is better than Ronaldinho and it'd be unfortunate if you expire from the thought (we need people like you to keep up the level of comedy around here).
You are free to like or dislike or in your exceptional case hate Raul. Most of us do not think he had a fantastic season and most of us can reasonably outline points as to why we think so. But making poor generalizations like you did, failing to back up your statements with sources...yeah man sorry to say you come across as a self righteous idiot.
Reply to realfreak:
I have to disagree. Raul gets quite a lot of stick from the Spanish media. Sure, not the Madrid loving ones but the rest do criticize him quite a bit.
Reply to S:
Ok you can suck up to Raul all u want, I won't bother you!
That doesn't change the truth, that he needs to hang up his boots or be booted out!
Reply to rumour mania:
My response was specifically to your illegible banter about OMG YOU GUYS RAUL SUCKSSSSSSSSSSSS.
Raul has become a big problem for madrid,they cant bench him becuase of the board and fans, but he is also ruining the chances of the other players. I dont think he is in it for the money, hes in it for the records.
madrid line up 09/10
casilias
ramos---garay----pepe---maicon
ribery---kaka---xabi alonso---ronaldo/silva
higuain---huntelaar/RNV
juz shut up guyzzz!!!
what the hell is wrong with u all!!!
no one cn do what Raul has done for madrid!!
that is fact..n pliz learn to trust it soon!!
he is the only one who play for the team n that one of the reason why madrid fan love him a lot!!
he is the best ever!!
n who the hell is ronaldinho??mourinho,wenger???
n to raul haters!!
u guys are nothing compare with Raul..he is our captain,symbol n soul of the team..
so pliz show some respect!!
REAL MADRID STILL NEED RAUL!!!even kaka n cris in team nw..REAL MADRID IS RAUL>>RAUL IS REAL MADRID!!
i juz afraid wat will happend to madrid if raul leave the club