Los Blancos did not make a single signing in the winter window, but the club are set for a busy July and August as they may be unable to register new players again until 2018
They were not bluffing. Throughout January, Real Madrid president Florentino Perez, director general Jose Angel Sanchez and coach Zinedine Zidane all said the club would not sign any players in the winter window. And so it proved.
February 2nd is here and Madrid have not added any players to their squad - even with the threat of a Fifa ban hanging over the club. The only movement in the entire month saw the departure on deadline day of winger Denis Cheryshev, who heads to Valencia after playing only 119 minutes all season.
Zidane will now work with what he has until the end of the season and the Frenchman will hope Sergio Ramos, James Rodriguez and Cristiano Ronaldo can all rediscover their best form to help the team fight for titles and forget about the winter window.
Even when the ban for the irregularities in the recruitment of young players was announced, Madrid maintained they were focused only on summer signings. With the sanction suspended, it remains unclear whether Real will be able to register players or not come July. Within the club, however, there is complete confidence that new signings can come in next window - even if the ban is not completely overturned.
FULL STORY | Cheryshev joins Valencia on loan
The fact that Madrid did not sign anyone in January should be a symbol of hope for fans - and the prelude to what could be an exciting summer ahead. With the ban suspended and still likely to be enforced for two windows, Real will be expected to double or triple their activity in the summer - just as Barcelona did in 2014 to prepare them for a whole year without the possibility of registering new players. Fireworks are always expected from Madrid in the summer transfer window, but this year should make them more spectacular than ever.
But it is not only Madrid, of course. Atletico are in the same situation after they too were hit with a ban, while Bayern Munich and Manchester City both begin new projects and teams like Manchester United, Chelsea and even Paris Saint-Germain are likely to need something of an overhaul.
That, along with Euro 2016, makes for an exciting summer ahead in Europe and Madrid, as so often, will be at the heart of it.
- Goal