Next year Real Madrid will play with the offensive department occupied by Micronesia. Indeed, according to the money, something more. In 2009 Cristiano Ronaldo for 94 million (record), last year Gareth Bale for 100 million (new record) and a few days ago James Rodriguez for almost 75 million. In all, the three forwards cost the patron Florentino Peres something like 269 million euros. A small gross domestic product.
The most apt comparison is precisely that with Micronesia, which – according to the numbers published by the International Monetary Fund at the World Economic Forum last October – closed 2012 with a GDP with a nominal value of 326 million dollars, or just over 242 million euros. On balance, 27 million less than the goleador blancos.
So far, however, we have only talked about three players. Let's add to the bill the other 90-pound pieces that arrived among the merengues in the last five years: Ricardo Kakà, Karim Benzema and Xabi Alonso in 2009 (65, 35 and 31 million respectively), Angel Di Maria in 2010 (33 million), Fabio Coentrao in 2011 (30 million), Luka Modric in 2012 (40 million), Isco and Asier Illaramendi in 2013 (30 and 39 million) and Toni Kroos about ten days ago (another 30 million).
The sum reaches 333 million, which added to the swag of Ronaldo, Bale and Rodriguez bring the total to 602 million. In this case, the most effective comparison is with the State of Samoa, well known to rugby fans. Also in 2012, and again according to the IMF, the GDP of the island state stood at 690 million dollars, equal to approximately 512 million euros. Ninety less than Madrid.
But it's not over. In an attempt to reach the tenth Champions League – finally reached last year – Real also bought other players: in 2009 Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Lassana Diarra (both for 25 million), in 2010 Mesut Oezil and Sami Khedira (for 18 and 14 million), in 2011 Nuri Sahin and Raphael Varane (both for 10 million) and this year Keylor Navas is also about to arrive (10 million). The total – and final – bill thus rises to 714 million euros, just 52 million less than the GDP of the Seychelles. Who knows if Perez decides to buy those too.
