Thursday Nutmeg: More Trophies Edition

Welcome to a new feature here at Managing Madrid, The Nutmeg. We will feature mainly news as it relates to Real Madrid, La Liga and even a smattering of other football news from around the world of European Football.

I was able to catch a few minutes here and there of yesterday's tilt with Hertha Berlin, sadly I missed the laser free kick from CR7 - though the video if you haven't seen it is worth a look. I've watched it several times - it doesn't get old. We can take comfort in the fact we'll see more in the coming term.

Striker Karim Benzema who scored a brace in yesterdays match, feels that things are starting to tilt his way after the fare share of criticism that he received last term.

"I am very happy for this start to the pre-season because I have been working a lot, but the goals have arrived thanks to my teammates, who give me a lot of passes," he told Cadena Ser.

"The coach and the club trust me and that is very important, I will always work to play.

"I feel very fine and I am working to be the starting striker of Real Madrid.

It's the goal of every team at the start of the season to fill the trophy case with more silverware , some win more than others(just ask Arsenal). Last term los blancos only were able to add the Copa del Ray to the case, and according to Sami Khedria the goal of the team is to add to the collection for the 2011/12 season. Not only that but he's also very happy that he's been able to bounce back from injury so quickly.

"I'm satisfied. I feel positive after coming back from injury so soon. I want to play as many games as possible and train to reach optimum form. I'm very happy to be back in Germany. The match reminded me of my early days as a player. It is a real pleasure to play at such a stadium."

More of the Thursday Nutmeg after the jump....

As mentioned here Manchester City landed Atletico Madrid striker Sergio Aguero. When it comes to transfer rumors we know to take them with a large pinch of salt until something concrete happens. According to this report los blancos President Florentino Perez had a "non-aggression' pact with the La Liga rivals - which prevented them from going after Aguero.

Now that El Kun is with redhead stepchild of the two Manchester sides, his stay in England might be a short one. El Confidencial has supposedly reported that RM worked closely with City to help them with the transfer to pick up Auguero so not to infringe on the pack with Athletico.

Again, take this with a grain of kosher salt. Though I do think it's fun to imagine that Perez was pulling strings, though it does beg the question - what kind of compensation would Manchester City need if in fact this was the case? But again, don't hold your breath on this one.

The Special One will appeal his 5 match touchline ban in the UEFA Champions League on Friday. He's not really bothered by it, and would like to be back in time to for training.

'For me, it is not an important appointment,’ he told Marca. ‘I want to arrive in Madrid before five o'clock in the evening to train my team.’

Honestly, how can you not love this man?