JORGE Valdano has defended Real Madrid's record-breaking spending spree in the wake of criticism from UEFA president Michel Platini, who said he was "embarrassed" by the amount of money the club spent on Cristiano Ronaldo.
Madrid are already close to smashing the £200million barrier this summer after agreeing deals for Ronaldo, Kaka, Raul Albiol and Karim Benzema.
Kaka has already been presented after completing his move from AC Milan for a fee reportedly around £56million, while Albiol, who was officially unveiled last night after moving from Valencia, is believed to have cost around £13million.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday Lyon announced they had accepted an offer from Madrid for striker Benzema that could end up costing the Spanish giants around £35million depending on performances clauses.
The transfer of Ronaldo has swamped all of those deals though, with Madrid agreeing a world-record £80million fee with Manchester United for the Portugal international, and is that move especially that has concerned Platini.
The Frenchman told L'Equipe: "Ronaldo's transfer stood out for me, but if Real have guarantees from the banks... On a personal note, I don't understand how anyone can spend 90million (euros) on a player. I'm embarrassed."
Platini also remains keen to ensure there is "financial fair play", but warned it will take time before measures, such as a salary cap, are introduced.
When quizzed about Platini's comments during last night's press conference for Albiol, Madrid's general director Valdano said: "Real Madrid are capable of generating a lot of money. It is the richest club in the world and among other things that is because they sign top-class players.
"We will continue making world-class signings because its effectiveness has been proven in the past.
"We are a team which cannot aspire to be average, we need to be at the top. And for that, it is necessary to have players of the highest level."
Aside from the massive amounts of money Madrid have splashed out this summer, the speed at which they have acted has also been fairly remarkable.
In contrast to the rest of Europe, where only a handful of big-money deals have been completed this summer, Madrid announced agreements for Ronaldo, Kaka, Benzema and Albiol all within four weeks of Florentino Perez returning to the club presidency.
Valdano admits he was not surprised to complete so many deals so soon, but he did warn that Madrid fans may now have to wait a while for any more new faces to be brought in.
"Some of the operations had been started before Florentino declared his candidacy. As such, we are not surprised," Valdano said.
"We are now going to take things calmer, and I would not be surprised if in some cases we will be near the end of the market before deals are completed."
Although no names were mentioned, Valdano did admit that they were looking to bring in more Spanish players.
Albiol was only the second Spanish player signed by Perez during his two spells as president, with the previous player being Sergio Ramos, who joined from Sevilla in 2005.
"We are aiming this year to bring in more Spanish players. We hope that it is as easy to get them as it was with Raul (Albiol)," Valdano added.
"We want to strengthen the team where we think it can be improved. In some cases it will be starting positions and in others to complete a competitive squad for all competitions."
Kaka has already been presented after completing his move from AC Milan for a fee reportedly around £56million, while Albiol, who was officially unveiled last night after moving from Valencia, is believed to have cost around £13million.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday Lyon announced they had accepted an offer from Madrid for striker Benzema that could end up costing the Spanish giants around £35million depending on performances clauses.
The transfer of Ronaldo has swamped all of those deals though, with Madrid agreeing a world-record £80million fee with Manchester United for the Portugal international, and is that move especially that has concerned Platini.
The Frenchman told L'Equipe: "Ronaldo's transfer stood out for me, but if Real have guarantees from the banks... On a personal note, I don't understand how anyone can spend 90million (euros) on a player. I'm embarrassed."
Platini also remains keen to ensure there is "financial fair play", but warned it will take time before measures, such as a salary cap, are introduced.
When quizzed about Platini's comments during last night's press conference for Albiol, Madrid's general director Valdano said: "Real Madrid are capable of generating a lot of money. It is the richest club in the world and among other things that is because they sign top-class players.
"We will continue making world-class signings because its effectiveness has been proven in the past.
"We are a team which cannot aspire to be average, we need to be at the top. And for that, it is necessary to have players of the highest level."
Aside from the massive amounts of money Madrid have splashed out this summer, the speed at which they have acted has also been fairly remarkable.
In contrast to the rest of Europe, where only a handful of big-money deals have been completed this summer, Madrid announced agreements for Ronaldo, Kaka, Benzema and Albiol all within four weeks of Florentino Perez returning to the club presidency.
Valdano admits he was not surprised to complete so many deals so soon, but he did warn that Madrid fans may now have to wait a while for any more new faces to be brought in.
"Some of the operations had been started before Florentino declared his candidacy. As such, we are not surprised," Valdano said.
"We are now going to take things calmer, and I would not be surprised if in some cases we will be near the end of the market before deals are completed."
Although no names were mentioned, Valdano did admit that they were looking to bring in more Spanish players.
Albiol was only the second Spanish player signed by Perez during his two spells as president, with the previous player being Sergio Ramos, who joined from Sevilla in 2005.
"We are aiming this year to bring in more Spanish players. We hope that it is as easy to get them as it was with Raul (Albiol)," Valdano added.
"We want to strengthen the team where we think it can be improved. In some cases it will be starting positions and in others to complete a competitive squad for all competitions."
Copyright (c) Press Association
Related Articles
Platini calls for UEFA investigation
Five officials better than technology, says Platini
