What are the big Real Madrid players doing?

As I was watching Real Mallorca vs Real Madrid (2-1 for those of you who don't know), a strange thought occurred to me. What are the big Real Madrid players doing? This is not supposed to be some clever question or one with a trick answer. It is a simple question but at the same time one that had not occurred to me before. Juan Arango had just made it 2-1 and the camera freeze framed on the images of Zidane, Ronaldo and Roberto Carlos in the pouring rain looking resigned to yet another defeat. These are still world-class players. It is obvious that they are past their peak but they still have plenty to offer. Instead, they are at a 'club' that ceased to be about football a long time ago. You can argue that Real Madrid are now just a huge marketing machine with a side business as a football club.

I did feel some sadness toward these players. They should not be winding down their careers but should be contrbuting something to a football team. There has been some talk of Ronaldo leaving for Inter Milan and he should leave even for another destination. He is too good to be unloved at Real. Zidane should retire even though I would be sad to see him go. I really fear for him at the World Cup but I hope we will see a final swansong. Dare I say it Raul should also leave to seek a fresh challenge. This would be crushing for the Real faithful but he has not looked like even half the player we know he is.

Now I admit to being no great fan of the current Real Madrid. There seems to be a parallel between the splurge of Louis Van Gaal's on Dutch players and the current obsession for Brazilian players. What is needed is a purging of the players that are not fit to wear the white shirt. I am thinking of Robinho, Pablo Garcia, Gravesen and Baptista to name just four. If this happens, there is a potential for a Barcelona-esque revival but at the back of my mind I know this will not happen. It is more likely that we will see a new low for Real as the fans have clearly stated through the recent elections that they are quite happy with this state of affairs.