Benzema joins Real

[DavidEU 2,023]

Aguerro and Villa are overrated IMO and Huntelaar doesn't tickle my fancy either. Benzema's signed a new contract anyway.

Aguerro is not overated Alex. Looks a top player. Every time i've seen him hes been superb. Not just good, superb.

I agree about David Villa, as he doesnt score enough goals given the attributes and talent he has.

Huntelaar could either be a van Nistelrooy or a Kezman, and for the money Ajax wont, I dont really fancy risking it. He also said the other day that he's excited about working under van Basten (new manager) and wont be leaving.

[BlueLion. 21,491]

Aguerro is not overated Alex. Looks a top player. Every time i've seen him hes been superb. Not just good, superb.

I agree about David Villa, as he doesnt score enough goals given the attributes and talent he has.

Huntelaar could either be a van Nistelrooy or a Kezman, and for the money Ajax wont, I dont really fancy risking it. He also said the other day that he's excited about working under van Basten (new manager) and wont be leaving.

I'm not denying that Aguerro isn't a good player, I think he is excellent, but they way some people talk of him, you'd think he was Pele. Still, at his age, he could become as good as Pele. But it would take a lot of money to bring him here.

[bombayblue™ 55]

Aguerro and Villa are overrated IMO and Huntelaar doesn't tickle my fancy either. Benzema's signed a new contract anyway.

aguerro, for his age, is brilliant

I agree about David Villa, as he doesnt score enough goals given the attributes and talent he has.

Huntelaar could either be a van Nistelrooy or a Kezman, and for the money Ajax wont, I dont really fancy risking it. He also said the other day that he's excited about working under van Basten (new manager) and wont be leaving.

Villa's natural position is a second striker, he is one of the most clever strikers around imho..

he has a great shot on him, great at freekicks, both footed and creates for others..

problem is he's only been played as a lone forward or on the wing of a 4-3-3 in last couple of seasons..

if you haven't been following la liga regularly, ask any one who has and i bet 99% of them would say villa is better than torres..

huntelaar doesn't create but give him the ball and he scores.. but we don't play that type of football.. unless we get both of them or that type of players for a 4-4-2, both won't fulfil their potential..

[the wes 7,212]

Karim Benzema, star of Olympique Lyonnais (and of the French national team) is a wanted man. Many people expected him to move on during the summer, with any number of clubs, on his trail. In fact the list of those that were said to be keen on him read like the inventory of Europe`s most prestigious teams: Chelsea, Manchester United, Arsenal (he is French after all), Barça, Real Madrid, Inter.

And now a Lyon suit has declared that he has an offer on his desk from Chelsea. Unfortunately it`s in the same pile as an offer from Manchester United and Arsenal. Bernand Lacombe, OL`s Technical Director, says as much in an interview in a Spanish newspaper.

OL`s preference would naturally be to hold on to their player. Olympique Lyonnais, as a club, are head and shoulders above any other French side, whether on the pitch or in terms of finances, and their boss, Jean-Michel Aulas, has frequently declared that he wants to be able to keep the endless stream of top quality players from the club that are snatched away every summer. From Michael Essien to Mamadou Diarra to Florent Malouda, it would appear that OL cannot keep their best, and that is despite Aulas` negotiating style: hard-nosed barely begins to describe how tough he is.

Aulas has happily declared that Benzema (considered by many as the new Zidane) is worth €100 million. He probably is trying to scare off suitors. The player and his agent have insisted that there be a 'buy-out clause` in any renewed contract which could allow him to leave. When asked about the price of the player, Lacombe states that 'I`m not authorised to say the price, you would have to ask the player or his agents, but it is sufficiently high to deter many suitors`. For this reason Lacombe insists that Benzema`s departure would have a price, because Benzema should stay at OL at least until the World Cup in South Africa, 2010.

Lacombe is, however, prepared to say that it is 'less than €100 million`, and he is happy to declare to the Barça paper ('El Mundo Deportivo`) that he has written offers from English clubs (Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal) that state that the clubs are prepared to pay what it takes.

When asked about Barça, Lacombe declares that the Catalan club has talked with the player (with OL`s permission and knowledge), but that Barça haven`t tabled any offer since they knew that Benzema didn`t want to leave Lyon. Indeed, the player went on TV to state that his plan was to stay at the club.

Then the interview gets bogged down in one of those typically Spanish messes whereby the press want to know which club he really loves since he was a kid, Madrid or Barça, to which Lacombe suggests that both have good chances to sign the star. It will depend on the offer, although Aulas considers that he won`t go anywhere until 2010.

As news goes, the fact that Chelsea are prepared to pays 'what it takes` to sign one of the very best young players is encouraging. What is less encouraging is that Chelsea will be competing with any number of huge clubs, and are therefore likely to lose out on one of the best strikers in the world. Even if Chelsea can face negotiating with Aulas for a third time.

http://www.Chelsea.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=512086 Edited December 21, 2008 by the wes

[True_Blue 469]

He will go to Madrid 100%

[chrismada9 1,948]

I agree with the above!

[Ricky10 5]

I dont think he will go to Madrid because the got alot of strikers like Higuian,Saviola,RvN,Raul and rumors that they want Sergio Aguero from Atletico Madrid

[Badboy 1,526]

Saviola does not play ruud is injured raul is old sergio aguero will never be sold to madrid !

[the wes 7,212]

I dont think he will go to Madrid because the got alot of strikers like Higuian,Saviola,RvN,Raul and rumors that they want Sergio Aguero from Atletico Madrid

forget about Klaas-Jan Huntelaar

[Ricky10 5]

We should try and sign Sergio Aguero he is a quality striker

[chrismada9 1,948]

We should try and sign Sergio Aguero he is a quality striker

He is a quality striker yes, but I suspect Atletico want far too much

I heard from a source he's worth £65 million.

[BlueLion. 21,491]

I'm sure I posted in this earlier Don't get me started on Benzema, the sub heading to this topic says it all Scored the winner for OL this weekend as well, and at his age, could go and on actually be better than Trezeguet, who is a similar mold of striker.

[Steve 10,227]

i would like someone like benzema in our squad but i think he will end up in spain, he is very strong on the ball and has a very good eye for goal. how much would we be talking to sign someone like him?

[BlueLion. 21,491]

€100 million. At least.

[diskoviolente 425]

Sell Malouda and Paulo Ferreira and sell some seats to rich idiots and get Benzema in !

[the wes 7,212]

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed that Lyon chairman Jean Michel-Aulas received a massive bid for Karim Benzema from Premier League rivals Chelsea. Speaking to Le Journal du Dimanche, the legendary Old Trafford coach revealed his admiration for the exciting French international but made clear that they would not be dragged into a bidding war for the 21-year-old. Barcelona, Real Madrid and several other suitors appear to be lining up potential bids for the hitman and Chelsea are also now apparently on the list.

"He is an excellent footballer," claimed Sir Alex.

"He reminds me of (Zinedine) Zidane in the way that he uses his body. He has broad shoulders and a great drive when he has the ball at his feet.

"You always have to keep your eye on the very best players, seeing how they evolve. But I have never said that I want to buy him.

"When we played Lyon last season (in the UEFA Champions League), chairman Jean-Michel Aulas told me: 'Chelsea have made a 50million Euros (£44m) offer for Benzema.' I told him: 'For such a fee, I will let Chelsea have him."

[Badboy 1,526]

44milion ? stop talking shit fergie !

[BlueLion. 21,491]

I'd offer £44 million for Karim Benzema any day of the week.