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What's the story?
Former Real Madrid president Vicente Boluda has revealed that he was surprised at the lack of replacement plans the club had after selling Cristiano Ronaldo to Juventus last summer.
In case you didn't know...
Ronaldo said goodbye to the Bernabeu last summer and moved to Serie A giants Juventus in a €100 million transfer.
Since then, the 33-year-old has netted 16 times for the Bianconeri in all competitions and the numbers are only set to go higher, considering the fact that he left Real as the top scorer in the club's history.
In his nine-year stint with the Los Blancos outfit, the Portuguese has scored an incredible netted an incredible 450 goals in 436 games for the club.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid has struggled to replace Ronaldo, having only brought in former striker Mariano Diaz and Vinicius Jr. as reinforcements. Since the Portuguese's departure, the European Champions have endured one of their worst starts to a season, the sacking of Julen Lopetegui and a new manager in Santiago Solari.
Even then, the club is still struggling with their confidence, having recently just lost 1-0 to Leganes in the Copa del Rey. Juventus, on the other hand, won their first trophy of the season with the help of a Ronaldo header.
Also see : Copa America Standings, Copa America Schedule
The heart of the matter
Boluda, who was club president in 2009, has revealed his surprise at the club's inability to put a plan in place for proper reinforcements.
Speaking to AS, he said, "I will not be the one to add fuel to the fire, I do not want to delve into the wound, but Cristiano's 50 goals have come to nothing and that is a reality."
When asked if the transfer surprised him, he replied, "Very much, but mostly because there was no alternative plan."
"These things have to be done with a program of two or three years. It's like a company when you decide to relieve the entire board of directors. It's not something you can do overnight. Cristiano has gone, the rest are left and nothing happens ... Well, what is happening is happening, which was inevitable," said Boluda
What's next?
Real Madrid currently sit in fourth place in La Liga, 10 points behind rivals Barcelona. They are set to face Sevilla in a league game next on Saturday.
