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On Monday evening, unexpectedly resigning from the position of president of Madrid, Florentino Perez admitted his mistakes at a press conference. One of them - the "Galacticos" transfer policy.
"We assembled a team of amazing players," said the 58-year-old Spaniard at the press conference. "However, some players didn't click well together, so with my resignation, I aim to draw their attention and make them understand that the most important thing is Real Madrid."
"I don't regret inviting the best players in the world to the team, but maybe I failed to make them understand their responsibility, maybe I raised them poorly," said F. Perez, who had been president of Real for almost six years. "Perhaps my resignation is necessary to change the current situation."
During his presidency, F. Perez spent about 400 million euros on new players. He paid record transfer fees to bring stars like Luis Figo from Barcelona, Zinedine Zidane from Juventus, Ronaldo, and England captain David Beckham to Real.
Although Real won the Spanish league twice and the UEFA Champions League once in the first three years of F. Perez's presidency, since the dismissal of coach Vicente del Bosque and the arrival of D. Beckham, the Royal club has not won any trophies. The club's financial situation seemed to be in stark contrast to their performance on the field.
Before this season, Real spent about 90 million euros to revamp the squad. In the summer, players like Julio Baptista, Robinho from the Brazilian national team, Pablo Garcia, Carlos Diogo from the Uruguayan national team, and Spanish national team defender Sergio Ramos arrived at Real.
However, the arrival of these players did not seem to help Real, as this season could be the third in a row without any trophies. Real has already been eliminated from the Spanish King's Cup (Copa del Rey), is ten points behind leaders Barcelona in the Spanish league, and lost the first leg of the UEFA Champions League knockout stages 0-1 to London's Arsenal at home. If this were to happen, it would be Real's worst form in over fifty years.
"Some players think they have a guaranteed place in the starting lineup," said F. Perez. "I think they are now worried."
F. Perez refused to identify such players precisely, but his comments came just a week after the Brazilian Ronaldo, who has been displaying poor form lately, publicly criticized the Real fans, and was heavily criticized by the team captain, Raul.
"I made this decision to help Real," said F. Perez. "This action is deliberate and taken responsibly. Now is the right time to leave, and I am convinced that it will help Real change the current situation."
