Mijatovic: "Huntelaar is a long term project"

Wednesday 03 December 2008

Predrag Mijatovic has called Klaas-Jan Huntelaar a long term project for Real Madrid, whereas Albert Luque has his doubts about whether his former Ajax team mate will succeed at Real.

"Huntelaar is a player who we have been watching for the last two years," Mijatovic, Director of Football at Madrid, said on Tuesday night in a sports broadcast of Radio Nacional de España.

"I really like him. He is a great goleador (goal scorer) an has demonstrated that at his clubs and with the national team."

Huntelaar most fill the void that has emerged now that Ruud van Nistelrooy is out with a knee injury.

"Ruud's injury forced us to speed up things with Huntelaar. There was little time to find someone with the ability to score goals, someone who can help us. We had other options but decided to take him as he is someone for the long term."

Chairman Ramón Calderón underlined the remarks of Mijatovic in Spanish daily AS and said Huntelaar will have to fight for a place in the team.

"We only get the best. So the ones who come we got to help us. Still, the offense will be made up of Robben, Raúl en Higuaín.'

In El País Albert Luque summed up the qualities of Huntelaar: "He is someone who decides games, he can shoot with both legs and he is not a bad header."

But Luque has his doubts about the future of El Cazador (The Hunter): "He has quality, but I do not know whether that is sufficient to adapt to the Spanish league. In Spain defenders are a lot tougher and there is little room and less opportunity to decide a game. He is a bit like Filippo Inzaghi, just that he has more skill and Inzaghi is more of a fighter"

Marca calculated that Real Madrid will be the club with most foreign players in Spain after Huntelaar arrival.

The club has 10 Spaniards and 15 foreigners and with Huntelaar that will be 16.