Open Thread: December 25, 2021

The Open Thread/Daily Merengue is a place where you can discuss anything and everything related to football. Feel free to discuss the topics presented here, or start your very own discussions! The Open thread will be posted every day by one of the mods: Valyrian Steel, Felipejack, YoSnail, Ezek Ix or NeRObutBlanco.

Merry Christmas, Madridistas!

May everyone enjoy a restful holiday with their friends and family.

It’s been a strong year for our beloved Spanish club. As a team, Real Madrid recovered from some early bumps in the road to pull eight points ahead in La Liga. It happened through the discipline of the entire squad working together to fix defensive problems, as well as coming up with attractive attacking movements and combination plays.

Perhaps even more important, this year we have seen that Real Madrid has built a positive and admirable team environment. The club’s leadership and renowned values undoubtedly guide this club in the right direction. Florentino Perez at the helm of the club’s finances has meant that even Javier Tebas admitted that Real Madrid is incredibly well-run and has the funds to make more big purchases that should be profitable.

We have been blessed to be able to witness the performances of some all-time great players to have worn the white kit, such as Karim Benzema, Luka Modric or Toni Kroos. We can be thrilled about the progress of a number of exciting and brilliant young players. Eder Militao, Vinicius Junior, Fede Valverde, Eduardo Camavinga, and the list goes on. With some of the plans that could be in store in the coming year, things are only heating up for this club.

There is much to be grateful for. It’s truly a great time to be a Real Madrid fan.

Carlo Ancelotti’s Christmas message and his last interview of the year

As Marca announces, Ancelotti has been sensational so far. Some of the best work of his career possibly, and there is more to come.

AS also has the full interview:

If what Modric is doing is amazing, the same could be said of his teammates in the midfield: Kroos and Casemiro. Without boasting, does Ancelotti have the best midfield in the world right now?

Yes, I think so. Those three make up the best midfield in the world right now. Maybe the box-to-box midfielders are more what you think of, but Modric, Kroos and Casemiro have so much experience and are so good at the game that they are simply extraordinary. What’s more, it turns out they play so well together. When the three of them are together there’s nobody who can compare to them.

Real Madrid Family News

Congratulations and incredible timing on the announcement!

Real Madrid transfer information

They are, of course, not the only club willing to pay that fee (Manchester City and Manchester United also). But there is only one Real Madrid.

Good news on the Covid front

We are only now waiting for Asensio’s negative tests.

Benzema will end the year as LaLiga’s top scorer

Fancy Christmas tree at the home of Rodrygo Goes

Fede Valverde picks his dream 5-a-side team

He picks some elegant and skillful types of players who have the strongest kind of team mentality.