So another 1-0 win has secured us another three points which is great. What is greater is that Arjen Robben continued his amazing form and newly signed players, Lassana Diarra and Klass Huntelaar, both made good debuts.

Ramos (Juande not Sergio) started with Casillas in goal, Sergio on the right, Pepe and Cannavaro in the center and Heinze on the left.

In midfield, he started with Gago and Lassana Diarra who replaced the injured Guti in the center, while Robben and Sneijder played on the flanks.

Upfront there was Rau'l who partnered new signing, Klass Huntelaar.

Performance-wise, Real Madrid were absolutely offensive and amazing. They repeated the same performance they gave against Valencia and what was similar was that they failed to capitalize on the chances and score more goals which is not always good and if this keeps going we'll lose matches even if we play well.

As usual, Robben was the driving force behind Real's attack. His pace and dribbling skills literally exhausted Villarreal's defenders and helped us put more pressure on them.

He scored our only goal after an impressive run through the right-flank. The Dutch winger came inside from the right and shimmied across the penalty area past several challenges before curling a hard shot into the far top corner, leaving Diego Lopez with no chance.

That was a piece of art...

But what was more amazing though was the performance of Lassana Diarra.

I had never thought he'd have made such a debut. He looked like he had been playing with Real Madrid for years. He looked solid and unbeatable in the midfield. He also partnered Gago very well which is pretty amazing since the two had never played with each other. This supports my point that Diarra was a good signing. Many people thought that we got it wrong because the guy had been abandoned by clubs like Chelsea, Arsenal and Portsmouth, but If this debut is just a little bit of what we'll see, the guy is absolutely good.

As for Huntelaar, he gave a good performance too although he was pretty nervous. He had a golden chance but Villarreal's goalkeeper, Diego Lopez, was faster and closed the only angle on goal to thwart the Dutch striker. The funny thing is that he got booked in his debut! Oh what a start Klass, but no worries, you'll kick-ass next time.

Real Madrid Vs Villarreal - La Liga | 04/01/2009 - 17:00 CET | Santiago Bernabeu

If there is one thing that I hate about holidays then it is the fact that there is no football (except in Engalnd, of course) so I'm glad that everyone is back at work and Real Madrid is playing tomorrow night, and excited to see Huntelaar and Lass in the white shirt.

Our rivals, Villarreal, have never won at the Bernabeu which is WOW. I mean, they are regarded as a great team, yet they have never beaten us at our stadium. This shows you how great Real Madrid is and how other teams are ALWAYS DESPERATE to beat us.

Since 1998 they have only beaten us once elsewhere -- that is in their stadium, in the street or in any other stadium on the planet.

But history is history, because what matters tomorrow is what you do on the pitch, right?

Right, news is that Pepe and Heinze have fully recovered and may return to the starting lineup tomorrow night. Christopher Metzelder looks to be ready as well and he'd be wearing a mask to protect his nose if he played.

However, Gonzalo Higuain won't play due to acute tonsillitis, while Van der vaart looks to be in good shape.

Newly signed striker, Huntelaar has fully recovered from his ankle injury and could make his dream start along Rau'l up front.

Lass Diarra is fit as well and so he should make his debut tomorrow unless Juande decides otherwise.

Hey everyone! Happy New Year! :) Kristen here. :)

So, I was on my daily rounds of the transfer websites and the same thing was coming up on all of them, the Jermaine Pennant story. Earlier today, he was quoted as saying that he would like to leave Liverpool and go to Atl. Madrid. Then, later in the day, he was quoted as saying that he is "flattered" that Real Madrid have an interest in him and that he KNOWS 100% that Real Madrid has talked to Liverpool about him. He then later said on guillembalague.com that he would look into going to Real.

AHHH! It is all so confusing. Jermaine, please make up your mind!

But, you have to admit, this is the "beauty" of the transfer market. You have to love it. So, I ask you, do you want Pennant in the...

2008 has generally been a good year for me, for Real Madrid and for RealmadridTalk. Now that today is the last day in 2008, it is time to reflect on this year and make goals for the next one!

Real Madrid

2008 for Real Madrid, has been, oh yeah, an Okay year.

We signed and sold many players. The names we offloaded include Robinho, Baptista, Granero, Balboa, Soldado..etc I guess we transferred more players than we signed.

The most notable signings were Huntelaar and Rafael Van der vaar.

Performance-wise, we were up and down. In January, we were probably 10 points ahead of Barcelona and in just a few games they reduced the gap to 2. But we managed to earn more points in the upcoming games and they kept slipping up.

We also won the home match of EL Clasico. It was an incredible game! 

We got knocked-out of the Champions League by AS Roma, but we won the league again. Statistically, it was an impressive year for Real and Schuster, Guti, Rau'l and Casillas have all broken some records.

However, as far as the current season is concerned, it has been pretty bad.

Who Will Real Madrid Choose To Play In The Champions League; Huntelaar or Lass?

'Ello everyone! Kristen here! Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas (or any other holiday you were celebrating!) Mine was quite dull. :S It is awful. Two whole weeks without phone, internet, or cable TV is B-R-UTAL! ((Sorry, I am getting off track here....) Anywho, here are some little snippets of news about our knights in white.

• Jermaine Pennant chooses Wigan over Real Madrid
• Franck Ribery claims that Real Madrid would be his dream club and would love to play for them one day.
• Cannavaro: I think that I will be staying with Real
• Guti has claimed that Real will fight for the...

Dear Pedja Mijatovic,

My name is Adam Bader and I'm the Real Madrid blogger. I've heard that you are looking for a winger and there have been a lot of names mentioned in the press. Most of these names are not Real Madrid players in the sense that they could play for a big club like Real Madrid.

There is a little French guy who goes by the name of Frank Ribery. Back in 2006, when you and sir Ramon Calderon took over, I heard that he was going to move to Real, but instead went to Bayern Munich. Guess you guys didn't like how he looks, but now you should, and by the way he is handsome, and you MUST sign him if you want to win something this year.

He is incredibly fast. He dribbles well, he is a playmaker and not a trouble-maker, overall, he is damn good.

We have Robben, who is undeniably a fantastic winger, but he is not enough.

Since we sold Robinho, nobody has managed to play very well on the wing, of course, except Robben.

A while ago, Beckenbauer told me that he wouldn't resist Real if they approached Ribery, and today, Ribery called me to say that he loves Real and loves our history, so please book a ticket to Munich and sign him.

Ribery said:

"Clearly there are other clubs that make you dream - Real Madrid, Barcelona, Chelsea and Manchester United. But I like Madrid for their story and history."

So Mr.Mijatovic, If you think I'm stupid, I'm NOT ..... I'm sure everyone who reads this blog agrees with me, or don't you?

Hala Madrid!

There are rumors that suggest that Fabio Cannavaro, whose contract expires this season, could return to Seria A this January when the transfer window re-opens.

Logically, Napoli is the club he is linked to most of the time since it is where he started and Naples is his hometown. However, there are other clubs including AC Milan and Juventus who are also said to be interested in the Italian skipper which makes things very interesting.

If you know me, then you'd know I'm a huge fan of Cannavaro. With bias or without it, he is the best center-back I have ever seen in my short crazy life.

However, I admit his form might have dropped towards the end of last season and the beginning of this season, but he has always been essential for Madrid (and for Italy too -- which is known for having tons of talented defenders). His performance recently against Barcelona was superb and he proved that he is a strong WALL (The Wall of Berlin) as many Italian fans dub him.

He possesses superb tactical awareness, speed, anticipation skills, phenomenal leaping ability and ball handling skills, and he’s a natural leader.

I'd like to wish everyone who reads this blog a Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday. I'd also like to wish the club's president, board, staff members, players and their families, the same.

I'm not gonna stop blogging through the holidays, so make sure to visit from time to time. We'll hopefully see a new signing in the next few days and it is rumored it'll be a winger!! So lets wait and see!!

Hala Madrid!

P.S: Thanks to OleOle's Leonard for the image!

The following news story is from SkySports.

Karim Benzema has stated that Spain and Real Madrid are his dream destinations should he leave Lyon, but admits that he could yet remain with the French champions for another season.

The highly-rated 21-year-old has been tipped to join one of Europe's biggest clubs in the summer and he has made his first choice clear by reiterating his admiration for Los Blancos.

Real have made no comment publicly regarding links to Benzema, while Barcelona are also said to be interested, but the player has opted to promote the move himself.

"For me, Madrid is a dream. They are a club I have liked since I was small. But there are many clubs in which I would also like to play. Real Madrid is a great team and I have always said that I would like to play there because they have been my team since I was young," he told AS.

"Besides, before I only liked Spanish football and that was all I watched.

"The English and Italian leagues are great, but there are more goals scored in Spain and that is where the best football is played. It is a good country for football and there are some big clubs there."

He looks great in the famous white shirt, doesn't he?

Here are some little headlines from Madrid that aren't long enough for a blog post ;)

• Martin O'Neill tells Real to forget about Ashley Young.
• Lassana Diarra has been officially presented at the Santiago Bernabeu.
• Metzelder undergoes nose surgery, but will be able to play against Villarreal.
• Karim Benzema has reportedly restated his intentions to move to Real Madrid when he finishes his time at Lyon in 2010.
• Gary Neville claims that Cristiano Ronaldo will be STAYING at Man United.
• Arjen Robben says that Real will win every game in January.

If you have any other news, please let us know in the comment section.

Kristen,

Hala Madrid!