When James Rodriguez from FC Porto, one of the most interesting players in the world right now, last week announced that he was changing to AS Monaco I thought: "What a waste of a good player! He could have gone to any top side in Europe!"
But Monaco, with a billionaire Russian behind it, Dmitri Rybolovlev, has money, lots of money, for players who have no ambition.
One of these players is Radamel Falcao.
In the last few years Falcao has been a scoring machine for FC Porto and Atletico Madrid respectively, winning two Europa League titles (and the first player to score in two Europa League finals in a row), and is largely considered one of the best center-forwards in the world at the time. He could surely have chosen to play for almost any big club in Europe; clubs that would be fighting in the Champions League. But not so with AS Monaco: the side has just been promoted to Ligue 1, and Mr. Rybolovlev has invested heavily to bring in new players (other signing have been Joao Moutinho and Ricardo Carvalho), without doubt with a hope to be fighting for the French title next season against sides such as Paris St. Germain, Olympique Marseille and Lyon.
What a waste of great talent for the sake of money.
Showing posts with label Ligue 1. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ligue 1. Show all posts
Friday, May 31, 2013
Monday, May 13, 2013
The champions from Paris
Anything can happen in football, but money often is victorious. After 19 years Paris St. Germain again won the French League title after a 1-0 victory over Olympique Lyon (a team that dominated French football with seven league titles in a row until 2008).
In 2012 the Qatar Investment Authority bought the stock majority in Paris St. Germain and made them one of the richest clubs in the world, investing heavily in creating a competitive team. Carlo Ancelotti became coach of a team and some of the players that arrived were Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Thiago Silva, Ezequiel Lavezzi, Maxwell, and even the ageing but ever-present David Beckham. And there is no doubt that the team has been steadily improving, and after finishing second last season they put up a great performance in the CL against FC Barcelona.
Now the title arrived, and it was surely a deserved title. Many people will criticize that it is only a victory of money, and that is surely true. But it is also true that Paris St. Germain was always a great team in a city - one of the greatest cities in the world -, that needs a top level football side. If the French league can avoid the trappings of the Spanish league, the French league will benefit from a strong Paris St. Germain side that will also be great to have in European competitions.
Great new champions, and congratulations to all fans!
In 2012 the Qatar Investment Authority bought the stock majority in Paris St. Germain and made them one of the richest clubs in the world, investing heavily in creating a competitive team. Carlo Ancelotti became coach of a team and some of the players that arrived were Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Thiago Silva, Ezequiel Lavezzi, Maxwell, and even the ageing but ever-present David Beckham. And there is no doubt that the team has been steadily improving, and after finishing second last season they put up a great performance in the CL against FC Barcelona.
Now the title arrived, and it was surely a deserved title. Many people will criticize that it is only a victory of money, and that is surely true. But it is also true that Paris St. Germain was always a great team in a city - one of the greatest cities in the world -, that needs a top level football side. If the French league can avoid the trappings of the Spanish league, the French league will benefit from a strong Paris St. Germain side that will also be great to have in European competitions.
Great new champions, and congratulations to all fans!
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