FM12: Real Madrid - ¡Hala Madrid!

Suggested Signings - A young attacking midfielder would be a good idea, I signed Gylfi Sigurðsson for £8.5m and he looks like he could be a great player.

Strikers

Gonzalo Higuain is a fantastic poacher who is probably one of the best strikers in the world, in my opinion, he should be starting every game.

Karim Benzema has great stats for a striker, he offers something different to Higuain, playing a little deeper.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Jose Callejon can also play as strikers.

Suggested Signings - You could go for a world class striker if you wish, but personally I didn't sign anyone.

Reserved for Tactical Analysis.

Nice thread man! I've considered starting a game with them, just as one of them easy fun saves, might actually do one, and just try and create my dream team now that theres a thread

Good job Harry About time somebody made this thread!

Barca's first 4 league games of the season (plus 1 CL game):

Going well so far!

Who scored in that 12-0?

Who scored in that 12-0?

Messi x5, Pedro x4, Pique, Villa, OG.

How were your first games?

Barcelona are way too good in my game. I just ended their 24 winning game run in La Liga with a 3-0 win, but then I lost 2-1 away to Athletic. Won the Super Cup in the first season, finished 2nd in the league and runner up in the CL to you know who. Just need to keep going until Barca turn ***** I guess.

Just finished my first season, Won Super Cup, La Liga and Spanish Cup...

Yet 8 El Clásico's in one year is a bit too much

Transfers

I bought a lot for the future. None of my 5 transfers are starters. RVN was signed just because I love him and he is also great to have just in case of injuries.

The board made extra funds available to me and I tried to sign Kompany, but City rejected a £40m bid, so I'm still on the look out for a new centre back, preferably quite young (25 or less).

Sold a few players that I didn't think were needed. Carvalho was sold because of his age and a very good price.

Current League Table

We started off very well, undefeated for our first 11 games, but since we have been a bit inconsistent and the goals have dried up a little bit. We did have a fantastic clean sheet record as well, we were winning most of our games without the opposition scoring, but now they seem to be able to score, and not just one. Not sure what has happened as the tactics haven't been changed.

I'm hoping we get some consistency back in the second half of the season and push for the title.

I will provide a more in depth post on the season when I have finished it.

Barcelona are way too good in my game. I just ended their 24 winning game run in La Liga with a 3-0 win, but then I lost 2-1 away to Athletic. Won the Super Cup in the first season, finished 2nd in the league and runner up in the CL to you know who. Just need to keep going until Barca turn ***** I guess.

that said, Barcelona are indeed a tricky one to handle on this years fm

After winning nothing last season l decided that the only way to beat Barce was to assemle Los Galicticos MkII.

Transfers

As you can see, I spent a lot of money, but I also received quite a bit.

The defensive side of the team has had quite a major revamp, £40m for a 29 year old Pepe was a great deal, he has been replaced with Otamendi, Papadopoulos and to Kacar. Now we have more than enough cover in defence.

Di Maria was sold as I didn't think he was good enough and Kaka was sold because he is now 30, his wages were high and I have other players I want to play in that position.

Now we get to the Galacticos, Lucas Moura cost me a fortune at £55m (his release clause) but hopefully he will turn in to a world beater. I also met Aguero's release clause of £39m to bring him back to Spain. Hopefully these two will help us win La Liga this season.

I still have £70m left, I tried to buy David Silva but city weren't having any of it.

New starting 11 is as follows:

GK: Casillas

DR: Ramos

DC: Otamendi

DC: Albiol

DL: Marcelo

DM: Alonso

MC: Sahin/Khedira

MC: Sigurðsson/Ozil/Canales

AMR: Ronaldo

AML: Moura/Granero

ST: Aguero/Higuain/Benzema

I will update again at the end of the January transfer window.

Regarded as one of the biggest clubs in world football, Real Madrid Club de Fútbol has a long and glorious history spanning well over 100 years. As a club based in the capital city of Spain, the support for the club continues to grow worldwide. The long list of high profile players, both past and present, is testament to the glory that comes with Real Madrid CF. With a number of major honours to the club’s name, success has become a minimum expectation at the club. However, Real fans also watch with the expectation that victory comes in magnificent style – entertaining play and plenty of goals must accompany success if one is to succeed at Real. This is known as Madridismo. Madridismo is all about winning; winning with style, humility and dignity.

Between 1897 and 1902, Football Club Sky went through a rough period of time, including a point where several members of the club left to form what would later become Madrid Football Club. On March 6, 1902 Madrid Football Club was formed after the board of the club requested permission from the Governor of the Province. He accepted the proposed plans and thus Madrid FC was born. This became the basis of the club that would go on to grow into the European powerhouse today known as Real Madrid Club de Fútbol.

The first ever Spanish Championship was created in honour of then-King of Spain, Alfonso XIII, by Madrid Football Club. They did not win the Championship, being knocked out of the semi-finals by Barcelona 3-1. This was the first time the two clubs faced each other and was the humble beginning to perhaps the biggest derby in the world, El Clásico.

In 1905, only three years after the creation of Madrid FC, the club won its first official title, defeating Athletic Bilbao in the Spanish Cup Final. In 1906 and 1907, Madrid FC would go on to win the Spanish Cup again.

On 4 January 1909, after a meeting at the Club with delegates from other Spanish football clubs, the Spanish FA was born. Madrid FC President Adolfo Meléndez signed the foundation agreement after being named Secretary of the organisation by everyone present at the meeting. On 11 November 1909 the Spanish FA was legally registered at the Civil Government of Madrid.

In 1920 King Alfonso XIII granted the title of Real (Royal) to Madrid FC. This meant the club was now known as Real Madrid.

The Spanish Football League was founded in 1929 and Real Madrid were competitors in its inaugural season. Up until the final day of the season, Madrid lead the title race. However, on the final day of the season Madrid lost to Bilbao and slipped into second in the league, allowing Barcelona to pip the club to the title.

In April of 1931, the arrival of the Second Spanish Republic resulted in the loss of the crown from Madrid’s badge and also caused the Real to be dropped from the club’s name. The club was known as Madrid FC once more. However, in the same season, Madrid went on to win their first ever league title in the fourth edition of the Spanish Football League. Madrid went undefeated that year and also won the title on the turf of Barcelona, drawing the final game of the season that was enough to see a Madrid title victory. The club won the title again the following year, making Madrid the first team to ever win the League title two years in a row.

In June of 1936 Madrid and Barcelona played each other in a cup final for the first time. It was the Cup of the Republic, formerly known as the Cup of Spain. Madrid won 2-1 and claimed the title. Within a month the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War begun.

On January 1 1941, the club recovered its crown and renamed itself to the form recognisable today – Real Madrid Club de Fútbol.

In the second leg of the semifinals of the Copa del Generalísimo (named in honour of General Franco) of 1943, Real Madrid earned an historical victory over Barcelona, defeating the Catalans 11-1. The Whites were bitter about the 3-0 defeat at Las Corts Stadium in the first leg and the bad reception Barcelona's fans gave them. They stepped onto the pitch at Chamartín Stadium determined to earn a victory and sealed a spectacular 8-0 score at the end of the first half. At the end of the match, the scoreboard reflected an historical figure: 11-1.

Antonio Santos Peralba, President of Real Madrid, and the Marquis Mesa de Asta, President of Barcelona, were forced out of their jobs by the hostilities between both teams during the semifinals. In gatherings attended by outstanding figures at Real Madrid the name of Santiago Bernabéu, who had no dealings with the Club since 1935, came up. He was easily convinced to become the Club's next President and his appointment was made public on 15 September 1943. Ernesto Cotorruelo, President of the Football Association of Castilla, presided the Presidency Handover between Peralba and Bernabéu, which was also attended by members of their Boards of Directors.

In spring 1943, Santos Peralba pointed out that a new stadium should be built and that it should hold a crowd of 40,000 people. Less than a year later, Santiago Bernabéu was much more ambitious in one of his Board meetings: "Gentlemen, we need a much larger Stadium and we are going to build it." Bernabéu decided to build a stadium capable of holding 75,000 people in its first stage and whose building works would amount to 37 million pesetas (222,375 Euro).

The 1940s weren't the best of decades for Real Madrid, but they marked the start of Bernabéu's office and the Club's return to winning titles. The first were two consecutive Cups of Spain won in 1946 and 1947 after defeating Valencia 3-1 and Español 2-0, respectively.

On 23 November 1947, in a game against Atletico Madrid at the Metropolitano Stadium, Real Madrid became the first Spanish team to wear numbered shirts. It was Pablo Hernández Coronado's idea. The Spanish FA liked the initiative an decreed in 1948 that every team should have their players numbered in the range between 2 and 11. Once again, Real Madrid were pioneers in Spanish football.

In 1953 Real Madrid signed one of their most legendary players, the Argentine Alfredo di Stefano. It goes without say that di Stefano is one of the greatest players to grace the Madrid shirt and played a huge part in the success that the club would go onto achieve in the following years.

The biggest impact of di Stefano was that, in his debut season, Madrid won the title for the first time in 21 years, marking their third overall Spanish league title at the time.

Having been playing in a new stadium, then known as the Chamartin Stadium, thanks to Santiago Bernabeu, the board of directors proposed that the stadium name be changed to the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. Bernabeu himself wasn’t too fond of the idea but reluctantly accepted the honour due to the fact that every other member of the club voted in favour of the name change.

In the years following, Santiago Bernabeu met with other presidents of the biggest clubs across Europe to arrange a tournament, today known as the Champions League, which was called the European Cup. In its inaugural season, after eliminating Servette and complicated sides like Partizan Belgrade and Milan, Real Madrid defeated Stade Reims in the Paris final 4-3, coming back from a 2-0 score in favour of the French side. The trophy was a 23.2 kg, 66 cm tall amphora.

On 30 May 1957, 125,000 fans witnessed how Real Madrid were crowned European champions for the second time running at the Santiago Bernabéu after defeating Fiorentina. The Italian side's catenaccio was responsible for the 0-0 score at the end of the first half. The draw was kept on the score until the 70-minute mark, when Di Stéfano scored from a penalty that came from a tackle on Mateos. Six minutes later, Gento netted a spectacular lob that went over keeper Sarti and Real Madrid eventually won the match 2-0.

1958 was a big year for Real Madrid and its players. Alfredo Di Stéfano received his first Ballon d'Or. Di Stéfano was awarded the Ballon d'Or again in 1959. 1958 also saw another Madrid legend, Ferenc Puskas, sign for the club. Puskas is widely regarded as one of the greatest strikers the world has ever seen, scoring a most impressive 616 goals in 620 professional games for club and country, a record which includes 84 goals for Hungary in only 85 appearances, marking him as one of the most prolific players to grace the grass of the Bernabeu.

Real Madrid became European champions for the third time at Heysel Stadium in Brussels after defeating Milan in overtime 3-2 in 1958, marking one of the greatest years in the history of the club. The extraordinary match saw both teams showcasing professional pride. Gento's goal in overtime crowned the Whites as champions.

Madridismo triumphed again in the fourth European Cup final. The match was held in Stuttgart and Real Madrid faced an old foe: Stade Reims. The Whites earned a 2-0 victory thanks to goals by Mateos and Di Stéfano and kept their European crown. Real Madrid were already considered as the best team in Europe.

On 18 May 1960, Real Madrid won their fifth consecutive European title in Glasgow, a feat that as of today stands unrivalled. Hampden Park saw how the Whites defeated Eintracht Francfort 7-3, thanks to four goals by the unforgettable Puskas and three by Di Stéfano.

Libertadores Cup champions Peñarol Montevideo played against European champions Real Madrid in the first Intercontinental Cup in 1960. The first leg was held in the Uruguayan capital and ended with a 0-0 draw. The second leg took place at the Bernabéu on 4 September 1960 and Real Madrid won 5-1.

Real Madrid were eliminated from the European Cup for the first time in November 1960 against Barcelona. English referees Ellis and Leafe played a big role in the Madridista defeat. The former allowed an unfair penalty to Barcelona at the Bernabéu and the match eventually ended with a 2-2 score. The latter disallowed four Real Madrid goals at the Camp Nou and Barcelona won 2-1. The international press heavily criticised Ellis and Leafe's performance and coined the term Madricide to describe Real Madrid's unjust elimination. Real Madrid took revenge from their defeat against Barcelona a few days later by defeating the Catalans 5-3 at the Camp Nou on 4 December.

Real Madrid are the only side to have won the League five consecutive times twice in the competition's 76-year history. The first time they achieved this was between the 1960/61 and 1964-65 seasons and they repeated the feat between the 1985-86 and 1989-90 seasons. No other Spanish team has been able to break this record.

Miguel Muñoz's generational reshuffle of the team in 1964 was successful two years later. On 11 May 1966, Real Madrid won their sixth European Cup title at Brussel's Heysel Stadium against Partizan Belgrade, whom they defeated 2-1. This was the "Ye-Ye" team. "Ye-Ye" was how youngsters were called in Spain in the Sixties, especially those who looked like the Beatles.

Three tribute games were held to honour three legendary players at the end of the Sixties: José Emilio Santamaría (15-9-66), Alfredo di Stéfano (7-6-67) and Ferenc Puskas (26-6-69). The threesome were already a symbol of Real Madrid greatness and of the Club's history. The three became coaches at the end of their careers as players. Needless to say, the crowd gave them an incredibly warm ovation.

Miguel Muñoz spent 14 years from 1960 until 1974 as the head coach of Real Madrid until Santiago Bernabeu fired the legendary coach. Following this, Madrid went through several coaches in a few years, with Luis Molowny, a club legend, Miljan Miljanic and Vujadin Boskov all entering the club in the Seventies. Boskov would remain coach until the 81/82 season.

Santiago Bernabéu died at his home on 2 Jericó Street on 2 June 1978 six days before his 83rd birthday. His death put an end to an extraordinary 35-year Presidency at Real Madrid. Many condolences were received and deposited at the Club. A memorial service was held on 3 June in his village, Almansa, where he is buried.

The 1980/81 season had an unpleasant finish for Madrid. On 26 April 1981, they lost the League when the victory chant was already being sung in Valladolid. Real Sociedad, who drew (2-2) against Sporting in the last minute at El Molinón, claimed the title. Barely one month later, on 27 May, an Alan Kennedy goal (82nd minute) gave Liverpool the European Cup.

Real Madrid's first two UEFA Cup titles were won back-to-back. The first in 1984 against Hungary's Videoton (3-0 at Sosto Stadium and 0-1 in Chamartín), and the second one year later after defeating FC Köln 5-1 at the Bernabéu and losing 2-0 at the Olympiastadion in Berlin.

The Real Madrid of the Quinta del Buitre and the The Five Machos won five consecutive Leagues with extraordinary authority (1985/86 to 1989/90) and equalled the record achieved between 1960/61 and 1964/65. During the fifth League, Madrid set a new record by scoring 107 goals in 38 matches. The years belonged to Butragueño's fantasy and the dominance of Hugo Sánchez, who won the Golden Boot along with CSKA Sofia's Hristo Stoitchkov.

Ramón Mendoza dismissed coach Antic in mid-season. At the time, the Serbian coach had led Real Madrid to a seven point lead during the 1991-92 campaign. Mendoza was substituted by Dutch manager Leo Beenhakker who had re-joined the Club as Technical Director just weeks before. With the Dutchman coaching the team, Madrid were robbed of the League title in Tenerife in the last day of the season. It was exactly the same story the following year, this time with Benito Floro at the rudder. After losing two consecutive titles in the last game of the campaign in exactly the same spot, the Canary isle of Tenerife was tagged a “cursed island ” for Madridismo.

After snatching two League titles from Real Madrid and eliminating them from the King's Cup in his capacity as coach of Tenerife, Jorge Valdano signed a coaching agreement with Real Madrid set on putting the Whites back on the road to success and end the four-year Liga title drought. The Argentine did just that in his first season at his former team and all Real Madrid fans got to sing along to the victory chant at the end of the season.

Vicente del Bosque took over John Benjamin Toshack as head coach of Real Madrid in mid-season and spearheaded the Madridistas towards raising their eighth European Cup -second Champions League title. The venue was superb: the newly built Saint-Denis stadium of Paris would host the first ever Spanish final -as well as the first ever final of the European Cup between two teams of the same country- on 24 May 2000. It was a vibrant game which saw Madrid triumph over Valencia with a final 3-0 result. It was the last European Cup of the 20th Century and, as the first one, it belonged to the Whites.

On 16 July 2000, Florentino Pérez was elected new President of Real Madrid after defeating Lorenzo Sanz in the polls. Pérez's successful campaign was based on two pillars: get rid, for once and for all, of the historical Club debt and sign the best players in the world.

On 11 December 2000, during the FIFA gala in Rome, Florentino Pérez and Honourary Club President Alfredo di Stéfano received the accolade honouring Real Madrid as the Best Club of the 20th Century.

The Club Centennial took place in 2002 and attracted worldwide acclaim. From the sporting perspective, Madrid won their ninth European Cup after defeating Bayer Leverkusen in Glasgow 2-1; the first European Super Cup against Feyenoord with an identical result; and their third Intercontinental Cup beating Club Olimpia by 2-0 in Tokyo. All in all, it was an extremely successful 100th year for the club and was an appropriate way to mark 100 years of success.

On 5 July 2006, Fabio Capello signed for Madrid for the second time in his life. The Italian manager asked for and got the signings of Cannavaro, Emerson, Diarra, Reyes and Van Nistelrooy. The winter transfer window saw three new players join the Whites: Marcelo, Higuaín and Gago.

The 00s was decade that promised much but didn’t deliver the successes that many thought would come with it. Despite the wonderful talents of Raul, Figo, Ronaldo, Beckham, Owen and, of course, Zinedine Zidane, Madrid won only one Champions League title in the decade. Los Galacticos, as they were known, have become a team which many regard as one of the greatest in history, on paper.

The 2007/08 season began with a new project under new head coach Bernd Schuster and several new faces in the lineup: Robben, Heinze, Sneijder, Drenthe, Saviola, and Metzelder. Real Madrid took hold atop the table in Matchday 2 with a 0-5 victory over Villarreal, a position they never abandoned throughout the year. The Whites ended the campaign as the highest scoring (84 goals) and the least scored upon (36) team. They also established a new La Liga record by notching 85 points, 18 more than third place Barcelona.

After winning their second consecutive league title, Real Madrid faced Valencia in the Spanish Super Cup prior to the start of the 2008/09 season. Valencia won the first leg 3-2, but despite falling behind in the return leg at the Bernabeu, the Whites mounted an incredible turn around to claim their eighth Spanish Super Cup.

Since Perez took over, a number of high profile players have arrived at the club for some extortionate fees. These players include Cristiano Ronaldo who signed from Manchester United to Madrid for £80M. Not only this, but Mesut Özil, Sami Khedira, Xabi Alonso, Nuri Şahin, Ricardo Carvalho, Angel Di Maria and Kaka have all joined the Real Madrid ranks.

Goalkeepers ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

This one is easy. Club and International Captain Iker Casillas is your first choice without a doubt. The keeper has been stopping shots for the first team for 12 years now. At age 30, he still has a good few years in him and should be your starting keeper for at least five more years. After him, there’s noone decent at the club. Adan looks like a decent backup, though.

Positives – You have one of the best goalkeeper in the world at your club who is irreplaceable.

Negatives – There is little strength in this position after Casillas, so it may be worth signing a back up.

Defenders ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

You have a fantastic back four to begin with. Marcelo, Carvalho, Pepe and Ramos can do the job in the first season for sure. However, Carvalho is now 33 and will not last very long in the role. Raphael Varane is a young star and will no doubt be great for you if you give him a chance to develop. Raul Albiol is also there. Coentrao is a good contender with Marcelo for LB. Ramos is first choice for sure. Arbeloa can cover both full back roles.

Positives – You have good strength in depth with at least two people for each position (four at centre back).

Negatives – A few of the players are quite slow and can be vulnerable to pace. Left Back isn’t a strong position defensively and is suspect to exploitation.

Midfielders ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

This is the best area of the squad and doesn’t require any improvements. With the likes of Khedira, Ozil and Sahin there is plenty of life through the middle. On the wings, Di Maria and Ronaldo should be your first choice. There’s not a great deal of cover for the wings, although some players are versatile.

Positives – You have world class players and plenty of strength in depth, for sure.

Negatives – Little cover on the wings that means you may have to bring in one or two players just to provide back-up in case of any injuries.

Strikers ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Karim Benzema and Gonzalo Higuain are the only two natural strikers at the club (although Ronaldo can definitely be employed here to great success). Both are extremely similar and don’t offer much besides goals (obviously that is no criticism. Do not expect much in the way of assists though).

Positives – Two top quality young strikers who are both footed, great at finishing, pacey and possess great composure and off the ball movement.

Negatives – The two are perhaps too samey. It may be worth targeting a third striker as back-up in case of injuries or to allow for a different style to be employed, if you find it necessary.

1. Iker Casillas ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Spain. Goalkeeper.

Casillas is a world class goalkeeper and has been for the past decade now. He is your first choice and always reliable. He is also the club captain and should be for the next few years. He is irreplaceable.

2. Ricardo Carvalho ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Portugal. Centre Back.

Carvalho was one of the best centre backs in the world at Chelsea and was brought to the Bernabeu by Jose Mourinho. He still has the makings of a world class centre half. However, he is 33 now and will be 34 by the end of the first season. He should start for you in season 1 as he has wonderful stats in every necessary place. It is important to get a replacement for him, though.

3. Pepe ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Portugal. Centre Back.

This man has been at the back for Madrid for a few years now and is still one of the most solid centre halves around. You won’t find much better than him, in all honesty. His temperament is a small issue, but this shouldn’t put you off starting him. He has the stats necessary to be world class. At 28, he still has a few years with you at least.

4. Sergio Ramos ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Spain. Right Back.

Ramos is one of the best right backs across the globe and should be your first choice in the position. He is only 25 and so has a number of years for you at the back. He isn’t the quickest, but he isn’t slow either.

5. Nuri Sahin ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Turkey. Central Midfield.

Signed for £8.5M from Dortmund, Sahin is regarded as a great signing for Madrid. 6/10 may seem like a harsh rating on him, but this is simply in comparison to the great players he competes with. He is a brilliant deep lying playmaker and will vie for a spot in your starting XI for sure. Once Alonso is gone, Sahin should be good enough to start for you.

6. Sami Khedira ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Germany. Central Midfield.

This guy should be one of the first names on your teamsheet. His stats are immense and he fits perfectly into your squad to balance out your attacking squad. Defensively he is one of the best in the game. Although a little on the slow side, he’ll still have no problems in stopping opposition moves and breaking them down. Ideal for a Ball Winning Midfielder or Anchor Man.

7. Cristiano Ronaldo ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Portugal. Right Attacking Midfield.

Rated by many as the greatest player in the game right now, Ronaldo should be the centre of your attacks. He is capable of playing on both the left wing and as a striker, but he is a natural right winger. He is almost guaranteed to grab goals for you considering his wonderful stats. If anyone is going to lead you to glory, it is this man.

8. Kaka ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Brazil. Central Attacking Midfield.

Some people forget that the former best player in the world is still at Madrid, which is ridiculous. He is still a top quality talent and is only 29, another fact that many people forget. He isn’t your first choice at AMC, though. He is also a massive drain on your wages. It may be worth offloading him to try and bring in someone better. He can still do the job for you, though, without a doubt.

9. Karim Benzema ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

France. Striker.

Benzema has been at Madrid for a few years now and is only finally beginning to live up to the status he was given as a potentially world class striker. He isn’t fully there yet, but he isn’t far from it. There’s no questioning his ability anymore. His attitude is quite questionable at times, though. He is still a wonderful talent though and should be kept up front.

10. Mesut Özil ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Germany. Central Attacking Midfield.

It is because of this man that Kaka doesn’t get into your team. Özil is a wonderful talent and should be your first choice for AMC. His work rate and determination (or lack of) will get to you at times though. For his wonderful ability, he can be lazy and his inability to drive the team forward will frustrate you beyond your wits sometimes.

11. Esteban Granero ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Spain. Central Attacking Midfield.

This guy is a lot better than most people would suspect. He begins as your third choice AMC, but is good enough to start if necessary. It’s perhaps worth offloading Kaka to give this guy more of a chance. You could also look to offload him, but he’s too good to just throw away.

12. Marcelo ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Brazil. Wing Back Left.

Marcelo has plenty of talent as a wing back but is questionable as a full back. His poor positioning and terrible marking make him better as an attacking player. However, the second choice Left Back (Coentrao) isn’t any better defensively and so Marcelo is most likely going to be your starter for most games.

13. Antonio Adan ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Spain. Goalkeeper.

This is your second choice GK. He is average at best. He can probably do a job for you if you really need to rely on him but he isn’t going to play a big part in your season (any of them, for that matter).

14. Xabi Alonso ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Spain. Defensive Midfield.

Alonso is a world class holding midfielder. His marking is poor (underrated, if you ask me) but he is otherwise wonderful. He has brilliant mental stats and most excellent technical stats. His physicals aren’t too great, but they’re not bad either.

15. Fabio Coentrao ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Portugal. Attacking Midfield Left.

Although Coentrao is naturally a Left Winger, he more likely to be used at LB for you, although he is good for either position to be honest. He isn’t any better than Di Maria or Marcelo though, so he’ll most likely only get a bench role for you barring injuries.

16. Hamit Altintop ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Turkey. Central Midfield.

Altintop begins the game injured for 2-3 months. He isn’t particularly great but he is very versatile and makes for a fantastic squad player. He can play a number of roles and thanks to this he is worth hanging onto for a season or two.

17. Alvaro Arbeloa ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Spain. Right Back.

Arbeloa is a quality player but he isn’t good enough to start at right back for you. It might be worth considering him as your first choice left back, although he’s not natural there and he is right footed. He is also quite slow. His ability to play on both flanks make him valuable though.

18. Raul Albiol ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Spain. Centre Back.

Albiol is very slow. However, besides that, he is a very good player to have. In terms of ability he’s just as good as Carvalho and Pepe but his complete lack of speed means he is your third choice CB.

20. Gonzalo Higuain ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Argentina. Striker.

Higuain is just as good as Benzema. There is actually very little difference between them. There is no need to get rid of one or the other because they are both top quality and can both get you plenty of goals.

21. Jose Callejon ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Spain. Striker.

Callejon isn’t a bad player, at all. He doesn’t quite compare to the other strikers are the club at all, though. He would be good for starting against lower league opposition in the cups etc but he isn’t even likely to make your bench.

22. Angel Di Maria ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Argentina. Attacking Midfield Left.

Di Maria is your first choice Left Winger and a very good one at that. He has bags of pace and has a brilliant delivery on him. Coentrao will contend with him, but it is most likely that Di Maria will start in this role for you.

24. Lassana Diarra ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

France. Central Midfield.

Lassana Diarra is a good player but he doesn’t quite compare to the other central midfielders at the club. He makes for a good utility player though and he is perhaps worth hanging onto.

26. Raphael Varane ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

France. Centre Back.

Varane is a new signing at the Bernabeu but he is also a very good young CB. Varane is only 18 and has plenty of time to improve but he is already very capable of playing for you. Having said that, starting him from season one isn’t advisable to ensure that you achieve all of your goals (to win everything, basically). However he might be a better option than Raul Albiol.

There aren’t many players who are out of bounds for Real Madrid to target. In fact, just about everybody is a viable target thanks to the prestige that comes with the club. As well as that, there is plenty of money available to sign anybody you like. Having said that, here are some players who I think are worth targeting to improve a squad that doesn’t particularly need much improving in the first place.

Mats Hummels ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Borussia Dortmund. Germany. Centre Back.

The young German costs a lot of money but he is just as good as any CB you have at the club. Signing him will see that you have a long and reliable Centre Back. He should also make for a good partner alongside Raphael Varane in the future.

Kwadwo Asamoah ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Udinese. Ghana. Left Back.

Although his position in the game is classed as D/M/A © most people (myself included) find him to be better used at Left Back. Here, he can be one of the best in the world and it is difficult to find many (if any) who can perform here better than you. He is available for around £15M at the beginning of the game and can be world class at LB.

Javi Martinez ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Athletic Bilbao. Spain. Central Midfield.

The young midfield will be costly but can be a great player for you in the middle of the park. He isn’t a necessary signing as you have plenty of cover in this area, but if you choose to get rid of back-ups Altintop and/or Diarra, then Martinez is worth targeting for sure.

Jesus Navas ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Sevilla. Spain. Attacking Midfield Right.

If Ronaldo gets injured you don’t have much in the way of a second choice Right Winger. Navas is a highly rated winger and is also Spanish, which is a nice thing to have. There’s no doubting his ability so he can be quality for you if you manage to get him.

Carlos Tevez ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Manchester City. Argentina. Striker.

The want-away striker is transfer-listed at the beginning of the game is a top quality striker. He’s better than both Higuain and Benzema and is definitely worth bringing to the club if you can get him. He’ll cost a lot, but he’s worth every penny and would become an integral part to your attacking line-up.

The first two formations here are definitely favourable. 4-2-3-1 is perhaps more likely to become your standard setup with 4-3-3 being used in the case of tougher opponents if necessary. It goes without say though that both formations are a better option than the 4-4-2, which is just a third option for the sake of it. Benzema and Higuain are too similar to play in the same team and so it is advisable to use one or the other, not at the same time.

Nicknames

Los Merengues (The Meringues), Los Blancos (The Whites), Los Vikingos (The Vikings)

Legends

Raul, Zinedine Zidane, Alfredo di Stefano, Ferenc Puskas, Juanito, Miguel Munoz

Icons

Emilio Butragueno, Roberto Carlos, Iker Casillas, Francisco Gento, Hugo Sanchez, Fernando Hierro, Fernando Redondo, Manuel Sanchis, Vicente del Bosque, Michel, Luis Figo, Rafael Gordillo, Michael Laudrup, Francisco Boyo, Ronaldo Nazario, Carlos Santillana, Pedrag Mijatovic, Ricardo Zamora, Ulrich Stielike

Favoured Personnel

Jorge Valdano, Jose Antonio Camacho, Rafael Martin Vasquez, Cristiano Ronaldo

Fierce Rivals

Barcelona (El Clasico), Atletico Madrid (Mardileno Derby)

Other Rivals

Valencia, Bayern, Sevilla, Athletic, Osasuna

Estimated Value

£851M (Loan Debt: £288M)

Media Prediction: 2nd

And with that, I have nothing more to say. I hope you have enjoyed reading this thread and I hope it inspires you to lead Real Madrid to further glory. I will leave you with a quote from the current president of Real Madrid.

Great thread JDownie, but there already is one.

Ugh, jesus christ. I wish I had known. I've spent the last 4 hours writing that damn post! hahaha

In my defence, the other one isn't in the FM12 Links thread, hence why I made this one. Do what you have to do, mods...

Cheers for the comments though, guys

Ty & Purefun arent on the ball much these days. Thats probably why it isnt in the OP (despite being told 10 times).

Tis a nice thread though .

I thought Sahin was a 12m euro buy, not free?

You're totally right. I got Sahin confused with Altintop... both signed from German teams and both Turkish internationals, easy mistake

Also, I don't know about the fee, but FM reckons it was an £8.5M deal, which probably works out to around €12M.

Get a bit of activity going on in here...

My transfers in. Javi Martinez and Mats Hummels are starters, especially since I sold Kaka, Diarra and Carvalho. Martinez rotates sometimes, Hummels starts every league game though. Muniain is mostly used as a sub, but he starts all cup games and most champions league games.

My fixtures. Only two games without winning. I've still qualified top of my group though in the CL and I'm only 2 points behind Barca in the league. Considering my Super Cup results, I'm confident of facing them in the league though. Check out my defensive record. Stunning, simply put. The only goal conceded was an OG by Coentrao 10 minutes into my first league game. Casillas has currently gone around 1200 minutes without conceding. Incredible.

This is how my league table looks as a result of those fixtures. Doing very well. I'm confident that the league is attainable.

aaaaand, finally... the board went and gave me all this money. I've put my entire budget into wages and I have £2M spare wages and still £70M to spend. I'm going to look into Eden Hazard, Jordi Alba, Jesus Navas, André Ayew and perhaps another striker, even though I don't need one. I might not sign anyone in the end, I'm undecided at the moment. Ayew, Martinez and Khedira as a midfield trio would be immense. I know how to get the best out of the three of them to work for the whole team so I know it would work for me... considering Alonso, Sahin and Ozil are all there though, I don't really know what's best... I'll think it over.

So this is the Real Madrid thread now then? Bit of a **** take but whatever. Will move my posts over here:

Transfers

I bought a lot for the future. None of my 5 transfers are starters. RVN was signed just because I love him and he is also great to have just in case of injuries.

The board made extra funds available to me and I tried to sign Kompany, but City rejected a £40m bid, so I'm still on the look out for a new centre back, preferably quite young (25 or less).

Sold a few players that I didn't think were needed. Carvalho was sold because of his age and a very good price.

Current League Table

We started off very well, undefeated for our first 11 games, but since we have been a bit inconsistent and the goals have dried up a little bit. We did have a fantastic clean sheet record as well, we were winning most of our games without the opposition scoring, but now they seem to be able to score, and not just one. Not sure what has happened as the tactics haven't been changed.

I'm hoping we get some consistency back in the second half of the season and push for the title.

I will provide a more in depth post on the season when I have finished it.

After winning nothing last season l decided that the only way to beat Barce was to assemle Los Galicticos MkII.

Transfers

As you can see, I spent a lot of money, but I also received quite a bit.

The defensive side of the team has had quite a major revamp, £40m for a 29 year old Pepe was a great deal, he has been replaced with Otamendi, Papadopoulos and to Kacar. Now we have more than enough cover in defence.

Di Maria was sold as I didn't think he was good enough and Kaka was sold because he is now 30, his wages were high and I have other players I want to play in that position.

Now we get to the Galacticos, Lucas Moura cost me a fortune at £55m (his release clause) but hopefully he will turn in to a world beater. I also met Aguero's release clause of £39m to bring him back to Spain. Hopefully these two will help us win La Liga this season.

I still have £70m left, I tried to buy David Silva but city weren't having any of it.

New starting 11 is as follows:

GK: Casillas

DR: Ramos

DC: Otamendi

DC: Albiol

DL: Marcelo

DM: Alonso

MC: Sahin/Khedira

MC: Sigurðsson/Ozil/Canales

AMR: Ronaldo

AML: Moura/Granero

ST: Aguero/Higuain/Benzema

• A world class DM is required to replace the ageing Xabi Alonso.
  
• New sub keeper that could possibly take over from Casillas eventually as Adan is moaning about wanting 1st team football.
  
• Possibly a quality Spanish player, may try and sign Fabregas.
  

Nope this isn't the Real Madrid thread, the first one was made by Harry, this after asking to make one.

This should be closed unless Jdownie and Harry get some agreement and I'll leave this one open and close Harry's one. Its up to you guys, just let me know.

If Harry would rather have his thread be the main thread then I'm (obviously) happy to have that be the thread. I wouldn't have made this had I known that Harry had made one already.

Really not fussed, it's Harry's decision.

If Harry would rather have his thread be the main thread then I'm (obviously) happy to have that be the thread. I wouldn't have made this had I known that Harry had made one already.

Really not fussed, it's Harry's decision.

Why not simply copy Jdownie's tactial analysis into Harry's thread? Would be the best outcome imo.

Thought I'd add a "better" stadium picture...

1 Real Madrid 18 46 46

17 Granada 18 -11 19

Pipe down, old man.

Like I said above, if Harry would rather have his thread as the main one that's fine. He's also fine to use any of the OP from this thread if he so desires. I'd love it if he did, considering it took me about 4 hours to write up. I'm really not too fussed, it's Harry's choice

I think this thread is fine personally. Probably a good idea to somehow merge the two though.

As for the image, it's one of my favourites that I've seen on any "antimadridista" websited.

I'll admit it did have me laughing out loud, even if it does deface a stadium as beautiful as the Bernabeu.

Jesus. Just had a bit of a rough game v Valencia at the Mestalla. I managed to scrape past 0-1 thanks to a Higuain goal (10th league goal for him now in 9 league games, 13 in 10(2) altogether for him). However, I picked up several bookings and a few of my players - Alonso, Ronaldo and Ramos - are all 1 away from suspensions now. Not to mention that Pepe, my most consistent CB so far this season, is now out for 2-3 months after a tackle went badly. Basically, I've got a few injuries on my plate now - Pepe, Altintop and Arbeloa - and I'm struggling to get Ronaldo to perform well.

Can someone suggest a good setup to get Ronaldo performing anywhere in the midfield (with Higuain on such good form, I refuse to play Ronaldo up front)? On AML as Inside Forward Attack, set as my Target Man Attack with Ball To Feet and freedom to roam, Ronaldo has 5(1), 3 goals and 2 assists with an avg rating of 7.65. Admittedly this is rather good, but it's Ronaldo, he should have be scoring every game. He's only scored in two games for me, two coming in the same match. I don't really know how to get him functioning well. I'm toying with the idea of putting on the right wing as an attacking Inside Forward as I think I'll have more success with that, plus it'll allow me to play Di Maria on the left.

EDIT: In fact, I'm going to toy around with this a wee bit. I've got a great idea to get Ronaldo plenty of goals. I'll report back later.

Nope this isn't the Real Madrid thread, the first one was made by Harry, this after asking to make one.

This should be closed unless Jdownie and Harry get some agreement and I'll leave this one open and close Harry's one. Its up to you guys, just let me know.

Close mine and make this one the main thread. The OP in this one is much better than mine. I was just a bit annoyed last night that this one was created when I had already made one.

Jesus. Just had a bit of a rough game v Valencia at the Mestalla. I managed to scrape past 0-1 thanks to a Higuain goal (10th league goal for him now in 9 league games, 13 in 10(2) altogether for him). However, I picked up several bookings and a few of my players - Alonso, Ronaldo and Ramos - are all 1 away from suspensions now. Not to mention that Pepe, my most consistent CB so far this season, is now out for 2-3 months after a tackle went badly. Basically, I've got a few injuries on my plate now - Pepe, Altintop and Arbeloa - and I'm struggling to get Ronaldo to perform well.

Can someone suggest a good setup to get Ronaldo performing anywhere in the midfield (with Higuain on such good form, I refuse to play Ronaldo up front)? On AML as Inside Forward Attack, set as my Target Man Attack with Ball To Feet and freedom to roam, Ronaldo has 5(1), 3 goals and 2 assists with an avg rating of 7.65. Admittedly this is rather good, but it's Ronaldo, he should have be scoring every game. He's only scored in two games for me, two coming in the same match. I don't really know how to get him functioning well. I'm toying with the idea of putting on the right wing as an attacking Inside Forward as I think I'll have more success with that, plus it'll allow me to play Di Maria on the left.

EDIT: In fact, I'm going to toy around with this a wee bit. I've got a great idea to get Ronaldo plenty of goals. I'll report back later.

I play Ronaldo as an Inside Forward/Attack in the AMR position, he has been great for me there (admittedly, he played better in the first season than the second, but he could have just had a bit of an off season in the one just gone).

Here are the instructions that I play him on:

In my first season he played 46(2) games, scoring 28 goals and getting 11 assists with an average rating of 7.51. In the second season, which has just finished, 26(9) games, scoring 16 goals and getting 14 assists with an average rating of 7.41.

Thought I'd add a "better" stadium picture...

People at work now think Im strange because I randomly starting laughing out loud when it was all quiet .

Fecking quality mate .

19 games on the bounce without conceding a single goal. 3 minutes from FT v Sporting and we go and concede. Unbelievable how gutted I am at conceding. I thought I was going to make it 20 games. The game after Sporting was Basel too, then Barcelona. I could have realistically gone for 21 at the minimum. So disappointing.

Chelsea have been bidding for Marcelo all summer, they bid about £25m, I renegotiated with £4.5m upfront and £30m over 30 months, I didn't think they would offer it but they have. Do I take it? My only other left back is Coentrao.

Take it then buy either José Enrique from Liverpool or José Angel from Roma. Spanish and better (defensively, at least).

Cheers, think I will get Jose Angel as he will be cheaper and will only be back-up.

Scrap that, Marcelo rejected them .

A massive win for us!

I'm now top by 1 point. Barcelona aren't undefeated anymore. I am still undefeated.

Also, side note: I qualified top of my CL group and I've drawn Chelsea in the first knockout round. I'm confident that I'll smash them.

this thread needs activity!

Just signed Romario for £3.7M as a back-up to RB and protegé to Ramos.

Lost Di Maria for the rest of the season, unfortunately. He's gonna be a massive loss for me. It's gutting, actually.

It's easy to see why he's going to be a massive miss for me. Wonderful as either Inside Forward Support on the right wing or on the left as a Winger Attack.

Thankfully this man is stepping up to the plate. Wonderful talent. I can't believe I considered selling/loaning him out.

I'm looking into buying Jordi Alba for the left wing while Di Maria is out. If I don't get Alba, I'm chasing José Angel from Roma and José Enrique from Liverpool. If I get either of these two, I'll promote Coentrao to be my left winger instead of left back.

Also, I'm exactly half way through the League now so I'll post a mini-update, I guess.

Top performers and competition progresses.

League table. All is well at the moment, thankfully.

Shall I use this thread or the other??

http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/295318-FM12-Real-Madrid-%C2%A1Hala-Madrid!

Shall I use this thread or the other??

http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/294261-FM12-Real-Madrid-Thread

Starting a save with Real to keep me busy until the next patch is released.

Gonna keep the current squad and see if I can do better than Mou in my first season.