nan | 楠木

With Real Madrid staging another late comeback to win both the match and the league title, this season’s Spanish La Liga came to a close. It has been a unbelievably dramatic season for the team.

The last match was also the last appearance of David Beckham and Roberto Carlos at Stadium Santiago Bernabéu, and hence marked the end of the full-star Galactica era. Only a few seasons ago, Real’s line-up was the envy of every football club, the de facto dream team (at least in terms of star power): Ronaldo, Zidane, Figo, Beckham, Raul, Carlos… Those players were not only A-list football players, but also the biggest stars. Real Madrid became a team which previously could have only existed in fantasy leagues or the popular PC game Football Manager – it was the dream team.

However, football is not about dreams, at least not all of it. Real’s sluggish performance in the past 3 seasons is evidence. Capello’s return in 06 marked a return to a results-driven pragmatic style. The football wasn’t sexy (especially compared to arch-rivals Barca), and for a big part of the season the results weren’t there initially, but the team finally rallied and staged a late-season epic comeback.

A happy ending, if not somewhat sentimental. Beckham will walk away having proven himself finally with a real title at Real Madrid. However it’s also a sad farewell, as the process that led to this outcome was full of controversy and bitterness. Madrid fans no doubt will miss him, but the club made the mistake of letting him go.

As to Roberto Carlos, it’s also not without some sadness. He had formerly expressed the wish to retire at Real, but the club decided not to extend his contract. After 11 years at Real, this player has probably won every title imaginable: 3 Champions Cup titles, 4 league titles, and of course a World Cup title for Brazil. Real is where this enthusiastic left-back made his name, and he has left his name as perhaps the best left-back in Real history.

Real has become much more pragmatic. There are not so many super-stars left. There are stars – but those are the modest, hard-working type, few of which who could ever reach a Zidane or Beckham status of fame. It’s not necessarily a bad thing – usually the hard-working side wins – but it’s definitely the end of an era.