La Liga: Real Madrid have bought Brazil defender Cicinho from world club champions Sao Paulo, the Spanish side announced yesterday.
Real said the 25-year-old attacking right back had signed a five-year deal and would begin training with his new team on December 29th when they returned from their Christmas break.
Cicinho, who has an Italian passport and so will not take up one of the three berths permitted for non-European Union players, is the fifth Brazilian international in the squad.
He joins Ronaldo, Roberto Carlos, Julio Baptista and Robinho at the Primera Liga club who sacked former Brazil coach Vanderlei Luxemburgo earlier this month.
Spanish media reported that the defender had signed for a fee of around €4 million.
Cicinho played in the Sao Paulo team that beat Liverpool 1-0 to win Fifa's Club World Championship last Sunday and was part of the Brazil side that crushed Argentina 4-1 to win the Confederations Cup in June. Real now have a surfeit of right-sided defenders with Spanish internationals Michel Salgado and Sergio Ramos and Uruguay's Carlos Diogo all competing for a slot in the back four.
Real Madrid also named former coach Benito Floro as director of football yesterday. "Floro is the ideal man to take on this responsibility," Real vice-president Emilio Butragueno said. "He is a student of football, methodical in his approach, familiar with Real Madrid and we have no doubt that this is the right decision."
Floro replaces former Italy and AC Milan coach Arrigo Sacchi who quit as director of football on December 6th, a year after joining the club. Real have not won a major trophy since June 2003 and have made a disappointing start to this season. They lie fifth in the Primera Liga, 11 points behind league leaders and arch-rivals Barcelona.
Floro made his name as a coach when he steered Albacete from the third to the first division in the space of three seasons in the early 1990s.
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