Arbeloa For Four Million?

By: Corey | July 29th, 2009

It usually seems peculiar when a player himself announce that a transfer is imminent, but that is exactly what Alvaro Arbeloa has done, saying he will move to the Bernabeu in a matter of days. He told Marca that the deal is close, for a fee that Marca believe to be 4 million euros, surely a tad low for Arbeloa, even though it is his final year under contract. Could this all be to good to be true, or is it news that is an attempt from the Madrid brass to divert attention from the imminent deal for Xabi Alonso? After watching Gago play last night I am wondering if we really need Alonso, as we have four perfectly capable central midfielders but we will see.

I think my own judgement on the Arbeloa move is still out until I find out what Pellegrini intends to do with him. At left back it limits Marcelo and Drenthe’s possible involvement and their development, which at this point is make or break. It also lessens the playing time of Torres, either at right or left back, which should never be deemed acceptable. It also makes you wonder if Sergio Ramos will be finding life a little more difficult under Pellegrini, and that he may be used in the center of defense, even though I think he is not very good there. But Arbeloa seems to be officially signed now, so lets welcome his signing. We have a poll to see where other fans stand on the signing of Arbeloa? Vote or Die!


Do You Want Real To Sign Arbeloa?(online surveys)





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  • Mayowa 08032162146 |  July 29th, 2009 at 7:21 am

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    With d signin of arbeloa i will lyk to see drentre nd agus loaned out to a liga club where they can play 25 games or above the heinze must also be shipped out alongside salgado.
    HALA MADRID

    Posted from United States

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  • Bassam |  July 29th, 2009 at 7:45 am

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    I think you over estimate Torres’s ability at right back or left back. He is reliable, but the way i see it, he is best kept as backup. He is not amazing at anything. He is really week attacking. There is a reason why arbeloa is the 2nd choice right back for spain. I’ve seen him more than once, and he is capable. Him at left back, gives our central midfielder more freedom to roam forward! Now we don’t need alonso, since we can play an attack minded central midfielder without worrying about the defensive duties as much. Very good deal bringing back another youth product.

    Posted from Islamic Republic Of Iran Islamic Republic Of Iran

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  • Thomas |  July 29th, 2009 at 8:46 am

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    Why don’t you guys get an actual left back? Arbeloa and Torres are both right backs naturally.

    Posted from United States

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  • Andres |  July 29th, 2009 at 9:49 am

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    Bassam I agree with everything you said except us not needing xabi anymore because I don’t think we’re buying him mainly cuz of his defensive attributes its his creativity that’s attractive to pellegrini and co
    And I read an article on marca this morning that quoted valdano and pellegrini saying that alonso is vital to our new project

    Posted from United States United States

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  • Donovan |  July 29th, 2009 at 10:07 am

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    I think its a good move signing him. He was really good in the games we played Liverpool. Just think that next season when Salgado retires then we have a replacement already. What concerns me though is where he will play. Im not so keen on him playing as a left back. But as a right back he is good.

    Posted from United States

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  • Andres |  July 29th, 2009 at 10:40 am

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    Donovan if he works on his left foot a bit he might turn out to be our own phillip lahm who knows ….yea I’m kinda day dreaming there but that is good for you sometimes

    Posted from United States United States

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  • john |  July 29th, 2009 at 11:33 am

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    I think the price is fair, but if there was a ‘Madrid should buy a natural Left Back instead’ option on the poll, I would have chosen that.

    I’m really curious about M.Diarra at this point. If we keep him, then I think Gago is transfer fodder. But if we don’t, imagine what would happen were Lass to pick up an injury. We need the depth in the DM position. But as a distributor/organizer? I’ve seen about enough.

    Posted from United States

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  • john |  July 29th, 2009 at 11:38 am

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    But how crazy is it that we still aren’t shipping out players? With Arbeloa, the squad list is up to 30. Is it just me, or has Madrid effectively crippled themselves before even reaching the negotiation table? RM says give us this much. Other team says, or what, you’ll cut them?

    Posted from United States

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  • Donovan |  July 29th, 2009 at 11:41 am

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    Andres he could work on the left but he would have to improve his crossing with his left foot. Ive seen him play as a left back and when ever he crosses he cuts back and uses his right foot. Thats why im a bit sceptical of him playing as left back. I think Torres is better with his left foot but he lacks the attacking bit of a full back.

    Posted from Germany Germany

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  • Sambit |  July 29th, 2009 at 7:26 pm

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    Okay so by the sounds of it Arbeloa will definitely be our starting left back. We haven’t been linked with anyone else, and if we were’nt buying him for the left back position we wouldn’t have bought him at all because we have torres and salgado for backup on the right.

    I think this is a bad move to be honest. If, as I’ve been told many times on this blog, Kaka plays a false left midfielder role (even though I think that role is unsuitable for him, he’s far better off as a second striker), where does any width come from on the left? And on the counter we’d leave them plenty of space to run down their right channel?

    I’d have much rather preferred a more adventurous left back, although one with defensive smarts too.

    Posted from United States

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  • Madridista Mac |  July 29th, 2009 at 10:26 pm

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    I agree totally with Sambit’s last line, problem is, there aren’t many out there.

    I also feel that there is a tendency to over hype Torres because of his sentimental value as a canterano. He is to me, almost strictly a utility backup for LB and RB and has yet to show that he can be a starter.

    On Arbeloa, I think he’s good to have, but not essential. But now that we have him, one of Drenthe and Marcelo need to be loaned out to get regular minutes to prove themselves. Marcelo looked bright last season as a left winger and I can’t help but say that Drenthe has looked good thus far this preseason. Both are still hapless on defense however. As such, alternating between an attacking LB (Marcelo / Drenthe) and a more ‘conservative’ one (Arbeloa) seems smart. Using Arbeloa as backup for Ramos in case of injuries or suspensions (which can be frequent too) would also be useful.

    The potentially sad conclusion to this however is that Arbeloa is almost a direct upgrade to Miguel Torres.

    The best thing to do in my opinion is to offload Salgado and send him to the sunset with the respect and honor he deserves for his many years of service to the club. It doesn’t seem smart to me to let go of Torres just because we want Salgado to finish up his contract for just one more season.

    Posted from Singapore Singapore

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  • Bassam |  July 30th, 2009 at 3:07 am

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    Well said Madradista Mac. Take for example Abidal for Barcelona. He is very bad going forward and crossing, but is very solid in defense. They got Maxwell to injected in his position to create more attacking threat when needed. I think we can do the same with arbeloa and marcelo/drenthe. Arbeloa creates more stability in defense, which lets face it, still looks very shaky. He has champions league experience which is always good, and as i read, plays very well in big games.

    Torres, as Madradista Mac notes, is over hyped because of his status at the club. Yes he is a cantera products, but when you take that away, he is not that good at all. He does his job, but when faced by a pacy winger, he is in real trouble. He seems content with his role at the club, covering both the left back and right back position, and this is what he is best at doing.

    I think I’ve mentioned this before, but don’t you guys think we should keep Drenthe and Marcelo and maybe get rid of a certain player that gets injured a lot and lacks any form of team play. Yes I’m talking about Robben. With Marcelo showing he is very good at the winger position, and Drenthe also showing that his pace is devastating there, maybe we don’t need Robben. He is a player that can get us a lot of cash and frankly with Kaka’s arrival, i really don’t see a place for him unless we play the 4231 or 433 formation which Pelligrini seems to avoid. We also have Granero that seems very capable of covering all over the midfield.

    I honestly can’t wait for players to start leaving, because this is creating an instability for us as fans, and the team as a whole.

    Posted from Islamic Republic Of Iran Islamic Republic Of Iran

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  • john |  July 30th, 2009 at 11:10 am

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    Maybe it is sentimentality, but I disagree about Torres. I think he’s a well disciplined defensive back. Maybe not a starter, but a talented player who will continue to improve, and is valuable to the club.

    Posted from United States

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