Madrid have already splashed out a reported £56m on Kaka and have agreed an £80m fee with Manchester United for Cristiano Ronaldo, while further big-money arrivals are being talked about every day in the Spanish media.

The huge recruitment drive is the cornerstone of Florentino Perez's plan to return Madrid back to the top of the football tree, but Figo has pointed out that spending big does not necessarily ensure trophies will follow.

"The philosophy continues to be the same - to sign great players. I only hope that the on-field results accompany that. It's normal that you would always prefer to have the best players in the world, but this doesn't guarantee you success," former Real Madrid star Figo said.

"You cannot buy success, although at this time he (Perez) is buying everything he wants."

In the midst of a global financial crisis, Madrid have come under criticism for the transfer fees they are paying out, with the possibility of the club spending up to £250million on just a handful of new faces by the end of the summer.

Figo, who himself once held the tag as the world's costliest player when he moved from Barcelona to Madrid for £37m in 2000, said of the outlay: "I don't know how they will recover 200 million euros because I'm not an economist, but for me this really seems a lot.

"The people in charge clearly have a different point of view and will know how to get it back. It's normal that there are people who are astonished by what is spent in football, but it's the law of the market."

Leaving aside the world record fee for Ronaldo though, Figo believes his fellow Portuguese will be a success at the Bernabeu.

"What he has done the last few years shows the quality he has. I'm sure that he is also going to do well at Real Madrid," Figo was quoted as saying on Spanish radio stations Onda Cero and Radio Marca.