Real Madrid and an extraordinary summer spending spree continued relentlessly sending reverberations through the world of football last night when the club agreed a £ 30m deal to sign France striker Karim Benzema, a transfer that is spending more than £ 180m since Florentino Perez was appointed as his galactic-obsessed president a month ago.
Perez has now signed Cristiano Ronaldo for 80 million pounds, £ 59m Kaka, Raul Albiol for £ 13m and the man regarded as the most exciting young player in France, in an agreement that could rise to £ 35.2m, depending of his success at the Bernabeu.
Benzema, the scorer of 23 goals in Ligue 1 last season, has been strongly linked with Arsenal and in particular Manchester United Sir Alex Ferguson, but long-standing admiration for the 21-year-old Lyon player never manifested in the form of a concerted attempt to take him to Old Trafford as a replacement for Carlos Tevez.
In contrast, Madrid has left to add another striker to their already bloated staffing. "We know of its importance and effectiveness in our team," Claude Puel, the Lyon coach, said. "It's an exceptional player, but we also know the financial figures of the club."
Lyon said in a statement: "The player wants to seize the opportunity offered by Real Madrid to become a key player in an ambitious new policy of more of the world's greatest players. Lyon Karim Benzema has agreed the decision and the negotiated terms of a transfer that satisfies all parties. "
Benzema, who helped Lyon win four Ligue 1 titles and has accumulated 24 caps for France, scoring six goals in the process was the completion of the operation in Madrid, while tonight, back in England, the options Ferguson now appears to have declined further provides that after the season with only two senior strikers, Wayne Rooney and Dimitar Berbatov.
The transfer of Ronaldo was officially concluded today, with the money they receive in America a lump sum, and indications are that Old Trafford Ferguson is happy to be part of the money for the time being, despite having spent £ 16m and the signing of Luis Antonio Valencia Wigan.
"Cristiano has been a wonderful player for Manchester United," Ferguson said in a statement. "His six years at Old Trafford has seen him become the best footballer in the world.
"His contribution has been an important factor in the success of the club at that time and his talent, his ability to entertain and his infectious personality has captivated fans around the world. Everyone here wishes him well in his future career."
Ronaldo's new career as a Madrid player had an inauspicious start, however, when a car he allegedly broke the window after being followed by photographers in Lisbon. A 17-year-old was injured by flying glass and had submitted a complaint to the police.
"He [the photographer] on car chased me from the Ritz Hotel with my mother in the car with me and filmed all our actions," Ronaldo said on the website of Gestifute, the agency that represents him. "The persecution so upset that my mother had to stop and convince them to leave us." Reports suggested Ronaldo broke the window with a single shot. A police spokesman in Lisbon, declined comment.
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