this weekend’s talking points

What to talk about this weekend with your Real Madrid-loving friends – besides the Zaragoza game, of course.

One. Zidane vs. Pelé (and with Maradona as a prop) in the latest Louis Vuitton ads.  We all know footballers love their LV, so this is a perfect match.  Plus, Zizou is just so elegant, no?  Note the monogrammed “Z.Z.” luggage.  The ads were shot by Annie Liebovitz in Madrid, at the Café Maravillas.

Zizou was also seen on the streets of Madrid, filming another commercial.  I wonder what the finished product is going to look like, based on the picture below?  It seems very out of character for him!

Two. Did you know that Raúl and Míchel Salgado co-own a horse?  Her name is Bética and she won a race last Saturday, the Premio Diario ABC at the La Zarzuela racecourse in Madrid.

Three. Speaking of horses, Guti’s new hairstyle: two ponytails.  And Sergio’s hair is looking luscious, no?

On the subject of Guti, I was re-watching the Informe Robinson special on him, and there was a segment where he went back to his old elementary school, and they dug out his record:  with his classmates, he was “aggressive and accepted,” and was a leader.  In class, he was “restless, spontaneous, a chatterbox and sure of himself.”  He was also “messy,” as you can see below.  I’ve also included a screencap of Guti sporting another wonderful hairstyle, as well as one of him and his mini-me, son Aitor.

Four. The American tabloids think Cristiano Ronaldo is “dangerous.”  I know – this is soooo dangerous!  Seriously though, I think Cristiano is the one in danger – if he does indeed get involved with Kim, he’s in danger of having his sheets caked in make-up, of silicon exploding in close proximity to his face and arguments over who gets to use the in-house tanning bed first.

Five. Sergio’s pants.  Thanks to Deah, we have some high quality photos of Sergio from that team lunch/birthday celebration last month.  I think Sergio would look right at home riding Bética (see above).  And note the zipper and blinged out belt…

Six. Speaking of Sergio, he spent some time with some little kids last Monday as part of his work with the Apascovi Foundation (he’s the padrino), which seeks to improve the lives of people with disabilities and their families.  He visited their new center, and he’s also organizing the third edition of the Pro Am Golf Tournament, which will take place on May 11 to benefit the foundation.

Go here to see Sergio joke around with kids, sign autographs and knead dough! I love him in red!

Seven. Iker and Cristiano have the worst jeans in the history of the city of Madrid.  I wouldn’t mind so much, but it’s just that they both have so much potential to look perfect.  Here’s Cristiano yesterday, courtesy of Marca.

Eight. Rafa van der Vaart is on the cover of Marca today.  Inside, he talks about how he would like to see an Inter-Bayern Munich CL final (because he’s great friends with both Sneijder and Robben).  They call him “Mr. Comeback” (just like I did!).  Rafa tells us that he dedicated his goal in the Almería game to Jerzy Dudek, because he deserved it, for being a wonderful teammate who is always cheering everyone on.  In addition, Jerzy had told Rafa that he would score that day!  Rafa also reveals that he hopes the “for sale” sign is off his back now (me too!)

Have a good weekend, and hopefully Madrid will too!