What now with Mourinho, foreign investment and the promise of Galactico?
Florentino Perez this morning will start a new term as president of Real Madrid with a lot of problems to solve.
Perez defeated Enrique Riquelme in yesterday’s election with the final votes showing a complete victory for the 79-year-old, who is in power until 2030.
Riquelme, whose controversial campaign has included speculation that he will sign Manchester City’s Rodri and Erling Haaland, managed 35% of the vote but that was not enough as 65% of the club’s members voted to keep Perez in place.
Perez has been in charge for 23 years at the Santiago Bernabeu twice and has overseen seven Champions League triumphs.
However, he has major issues to address in order to guide the club back to the top.
Here, we analyze the three biggest ones.
Pick Mourinho and let him rebuild the team
Although he has not yet confirmed it, it is an open secret that Jose Mourinho will be the new manager of Real Madrid, returning for the second time.
He will have to rub the chest of a difficult dressing room that collapsed last season under Xabi Alonso and then Alvaro Arbeloa. Reports of disagreements between the players were commonplace and it all came to a head when Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni got into a scuffle that left the former in hospital.
Therefore, Mourinho is an unusual choice given his fiery nature and tendency to argue with players. He also plays the type of football that is unlikely to bring Madrid into the current era of high power, attacking football hired by the likes of Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich and arch-rivals Barcelona.
Denzel Dumfries and Iraima Konate will sign for Madrid in the coming days to strengthen a defense that was hampered by injuries last season but there are many other areas that need strengthening, especially in midfield.
There is also the issue of Vinicius Jr’s contract which only has 12 months left. The Brazilian star has expressed that he wants to stay but as the long negotiations make it even more difficult for him to leave for free next summer.
Announce a referendum on foreign investment
Another controversy in Perez’s campaign was his admission that he would sell a percentage of the club to a foreign investor to raise capital.
After winning his first fight, against Riquelme, he will now go back to the members of Madrid in a referendum to get their approval.
Details at this point are sketchy. Although he has confirmed his intention, Perez has not said what percentage of the club he wants to sell, and to whom.
He said in November: “We will continue to be a group of members, and we must create a subsidiary company where the 100,000 members of Real Madrid remain in full control. On that basis, this company may include a small part, for example, 5% of one or more investors who are committed for a very long time and willing to give their resources.”
Defeat in the referendum would weaken Perez’s position and lead to more uncertainty.
Bring the Galactico pledge
Perez was more cautious in his pre-election promises than Riquelme but vowed that if he won he would send a club record €150m for the “big player”.
Various names have been thrown at Perez and, although he denies it, the player in question is believed to be Bayern Munich’s Michael Olise.
Bayern have already said the Frenchman is unavailable no matter what Madrid do, leaving Perez in a difficult position.
The clubs know that Madrid will want a statement signing and will use that as leverage to increase the price.
