Mourinho has finally decided on his first team players and the season looks to be a promising one as far as replacements are concerned as Madrid have a backup for every position on the pitch. Gago and Leon will not be a part of the squad. Lassana Diarra, the French workhorse stays on another season. But will this eventual re-entry of the Frenchman help or hurt the squad?
To make it clear, there’s no problem with Lassana’s performance. He has had his fair share of eccentric tackles and chases that have thrown Mou’s tactics and zonal marking out of the window; but, he’s been a great utility player nevertheless. He’s fast, agile and has a great work ethic. However, it’s his attitude that could be potential cause for concern for the team. Now that he’s staying put, let’s try seeing what this means for the team.

Firstly, let’s look at this from a player’s psychological standpoint. Lassana’s re-entry into the team means that his centre midfield spot will go in direct contention with El Pirata, Sahin (if he gets fit), Altintop (not too sure where Mou intends to play him) and Coentrao. Xabi Alonso should also be included in the list, per se, but the Basque general is the captain of the ship and I really doubt Mou leaving him out from the playing XI; unless it’s fatigue, injuries or saving him for the big games. Granero has been excellent whenever he’s played, yet he sees the arrival of Sahin, Altintop and the retainment of Lass which eventually means he’ll be playing a bit-part role this season too. Coentrao has dazzled in his performances so far, and from a pure performance point of view the list (in ascending order) might just seem like – Coentrao, Lass, Sahin, Altintop, Granero for a single spot on the team. Eventually depending on his adaptability, Sahin may go in direct contention with Xabi, and Coentrao with Marcelo; but as of now, that seems impossible. It’s imperative to know that with so many players fighting for a single spot and with limited playing periods – you can keep all the players happy for some time, you can keep some players happy all the time, but you definitely can’t keep all the players happy all the time. Oh, and did I forget to mention, this means absolutely no chance for canteranos this year too, sigh.

The management also needs to understand the importance of smoothness in player transactions. Yes, it is true Madrid is the biggest club in the world. Yes, it’s true every footballer in the world vies dreams to play for this club. But if our management deals with player offloading in a harsh way, we’re slowly burning bridges with – clubs, players and their agents as well. Starting with Robinho and moving on to VDV, Robben and Sneijder and now Gago, Leon and Lass, the list is definitely on the rise. Lass is staying and obviously, the reasons for the departure of all of the others were different; but, all had a similar pattern. The tabloids started predicting who was supposed to leave, who was supposed to stay, the player’s started professing their love for their club, and the whole saga left a very sour taste. To be fair, with Mou in charge, the whole episode was a bit subdued than the other cases, but since Madrid is the largest club in the world, every minute situation is blown out of proportion. A little discretion while dealing with player transfers is an absolute must.

Fast forward to today, I don’t know whether to be happy that Lass is staying (cause of his workhorse-like performance) or the fact that he has all the energy to bust-up the harmony in the team with his new antics and demands. Whatever the case is the answer is simple – the player’s should know from before what they’re up for, the club should silently co-ordinate with other clubs and ease the player’s transfer and only then shall ‘Madrid-based’ (yes, no prizes for guessing them) dailies be intimated. This season, more than ever, our team is on the brink of greatness and problems like these need to be nipped in the bud before they become the reason for our downfall.