Moderation - a vulgar term for the instigators of the beautiful game...

As Myles na gCopaleen, Flann O'Brien once wrote that moderation was an alien concept to the Irish. But, spare a thought for the Spanish, eh? They find the term disgusting, insulting and clearly believe the idea should not be entertained for long. In a country where spectacle and performance is lauded and appluaded, perhaps we should've come to expect this. At a club where Puskas, di Stefano and Gento instigated global football communities to believe in the fanciful notion of a sport being something 'beautiful', maybe we shouldn't be too surprised.

It's still incredibly strange to accept that with Florentino Perez as President, every door within the Spanish economy seems to open with astonishing ease and a cavalier wink from those on the inside. As details have emerged in recent days about the monetary agreements put in place by Perez in light of the captures of Kaka, Ronaldo and the likely arrivals of David Villa, Xabi Alonso and Franck Ribery, the most interesting pieces of the jigsaw remain question-marked. The Spanish savings bank 'Caja Madrid' has agreed to give Madrid a 76 million euro loan against two un-named pieces of collateral. This collateral cannot be the club's training ground, having been re-zoned back during Perez's first period as President. Is it the Bernebeu? Surely not. Then again, a similar agreement is in place with Banco Santander and would be led to believe that more collateral is in place with this deal.

All this leads one to question how exactly Spain can be entertained by such daredevil financial antics when the country lies in the midst of a forecasted 20% unemployment level for the end of 2010 - a figure that could rise to over 25% given the right set of circumstances. As much as Madrid are the club of the people and Perez is the returning all-conquering hero, all heroes have a price and the astromonical monies quoted in articles featuring Madrid's current planned expenditure are mouth-watering. It's a balance-sheet of gargantuan proportions but one, I'm sure, Perez has the utmost faith in sticking to. One would imagine he's watching his back carefully and is confident of off-loading as many as seven players to help in his ushering-in of a new Galacticos era. But surely a global meltdown has to have an effect on an elite sports brand like Real Madrid?

Then again, perhaps football has beaten the bust. Or is it headed for a spiralling, out-of-control free-fall? It's been threatened with it for years and has always come out the other side; beaming, brazen and richer than ever. And something that was raised in The Times this week - are we just jealous? Should we applaud Perez and his bravery to remain incredibly confident, upbeat and postive in the face of worldwide financial adversity? He hasn't built up a multi-million pound business empire by being stupid and clearly his self-belief outweighs anything else within his psyche. However, when analysts sneered and gesticulated in disbelief during the first Galactico period, there wasn't an economic downturn to use as a stick to beat Perez with. This time around, there is. Currently, all financial institutions around the globe, particularly those dealing in private equity, are in perilous positions, even if your currency is Real Madrid.

Moderation...

The fickle nature of Madrid's philosophy continues...

Just after midnight, I caught the news that Kaka was finally a Real Madrid player. Weeks of intense speculation had finally ceased with Perez beginning casting on this year's summer blockbuster, 'Galacticos - The Return' . The conclusion was somewhat inevitable though my immediate reaction turned to Garry Cook and Manchester City.

Back in January, the City chief executive returned empty-handed from Milan, despite talking the talk in the days leading up to his Italian sojourn. Cook accused Kaka's then-employers of 'bottling' a possible deal between the clubs despite it being apparent that City were ill-prepared for hard-line negotiations. When it became clear that figures and salaries and percentages were still to be ironed out and confirmed by Cook, his employers and a small gaggle of legal experts, Kaka's representatives smelled a rat. They felt that this project appeared to be a fantasy to Manchester City, that this now-flush club had got itself caught up in a land of make-believe and were just happy to play in the sand-pit with the big boys. Ultimately, this was the case, complete with Cook whingeing to all who listened that it wasn't City's fault the deal fell through but Milan's. Oh, and they also broke a confidentiality agreement. So there. Hmmmpffff...

The continental transfer market is like a high-class poker table - in an instant, experienced pros can tell apart the steely veterans from the knock-kneed novices. And the cross-table flirtations between Kaka and City made sure that Florentino Perez was buying in to the next game. He had to be patient though - it wasn't until mid-May when he formally announced he was running to succeed Ramon Calderon as Madrid president. But, the Brazilian playmaker was on his radar. Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite once made the claim that he belonged to Jesus - but Perez fancied his chances. And anyway, he could take Jesus at the poker table.

And so it proved. We're about to return to an era of hard-line serial monogamy at the Bernabéu with Perez flirting with and seducing, not just a host of the world's top players but the club's core fanbase. In both cases, the demographics should know better. Actually, scratch that. The players are pawns in a political game and utimately, are merely stocks and shares. Not that they care. With a glittering move to a club like Real Madrid, the incoming players are insured in an iron-tight, win-win scenario - bank balance increased, profile increased, etc. So, the players probably shouldn't know better at all. The fans on the other hand...

Perez has been at Madrid before - it was a period of constant rumour, suspicion, idle gossip, not-so-idle gossip, four directors of football, six coaches, 20 players and €440m spent in just three years. He sacked Vincente del Bosque who had guided Madrid to 2 European Cups and 2 Primera Liga titles. It's also worth remembering that the Galactico period ultimately won Madrid a solitary Champions League and domestic league title while post 2003, the club failed to win a single trophy in the next three seasons.

But, this is what the fans want. The club has claimed two domestic league titles in the last three years but the supporters want change. They want big names. They want the headlines again. The question is, do they want to sacrifice trophies again?