Soccer Central

Spanish newspaper El Mundo reported yesterday that Cristiano Ronaldo will be on his way to Real Madrid next season. A recorded conversation is reported to have taken place in which Real Madrid director Pedro Trapote stated the Ronaldo move to be a done deal.

Capote says of Ronaldo that a transfer deal has been agreed, that Real Madrid “have already signed the best player for the summer” (which is later confirmed to be Cristiano Ronaldo), but also that “there are clauses that prevent us from announcing it”. There may have been clauses that prevented the transfer deal from being officially announced, but Ronaldo’s apparent future move is now public knowledge. Is it really true though, has a deal really been agreed to allow Cristiano Ronaldo to leave Old Trafford for Spain next season?

Alex Ferguson has stated in no uncertain terms that no such deal has been agreed, declaring that he “wouldn’t sell them a virus”. Is this merely mind games from Real Madrid, or has Ronaldo’s big money summer move really been agreed?

Neither party is likely to back down over this whole issue in a hurry; we know that Real Madrid spent much of the summer attempting to sign Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United, and that Alex Ferguson held firm in not letting his star player leave. Interviews with Ronaldo after Euro 2008 seemed to suggest that the player was on his way though, and that he really did want to move to Madrid; he remained a Manchester United player however and still plays his trade in the famous red shirt of Manchester.

Manchester United fans won’t be too happy if the player is indeed leaving Old Trafford at the end of the season; it was bound to happen sooner or later however as the player has always expressed a desire to play his game in Spain. Real Madrid have been very quiet in the transfer market of late; selling Robinho in the summer without replacing him, and seemingly there’s something big brewing at the Bernabeu.

Could it be that the rumours are true and that Ronaldo will be strutting his stuff in Madrid next season? Not if you take Alex Ferguson’s word, but I do feel that Ronaldo’s summer transfer to Spain is a definite possibility.

Football League clubs today voted in favour of a new rule which will mean that at least four players from a team’s 16 man match day squad will need to have been registered domestically, for at least three seasons, prior to their 21st birthday. The rule comes in to put focus on player development, and ensure that quality young players are given the chance to shine.

Regardless of a player’s nationality; if they’ve been registered in the UK for a minimum of three seasons prior to their 21st birthday at a club affiliated with either the Football Association, or the Football Association of Wales, then they will be considered home grown. Clubs voted today at Derby County’s Pride Park stadium, and there was a majority vote in favour of the new home grown players ruling.

The new rule will come into effect for the 2009/10 season, and Football League Chairman Lord Mawhinney had the following to say; “I would like to compliment Football League clubs for having the foresight to make changes that will benefit the wider game”, and also adding that “As a result of today’s vote, those players being developed will have a greater chance to demonstrate their talent at first team level”.

The Football League is really showing its commitment to young talent with this new rule, and the decision to vote in favour of the ruling is likely to go down well with Football League club following fans of the country. It’s certainly a very interesting rule to have been passed, and surely one which will have very positive consequences.