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Former Real Madrid forward Nicolas Anelka has warned ex-team mate Zinedine Zidane the pressure is always on at the club and there are no excuses for failure.

Zidane stepped up to the manager’s job last month after Rafa Benitez was given his marching orders after just seven months. Los Blancos have won six and drawn two in all competitions under the Frenchman, but last weekend’s 1-1 draw with Malaga left the 10-time European champions nine points off the pace in the league.

While the official line from the players and manager are that they will fight for every point left in the title race, Los Blancos’ most realistic hopes of silverware this season rest with the Champions League. The defeated Roma last week to put one foot in the quarter finals of the competition.

Anelka knows what it is like playing in the pressure cauldron at the Santiago Bernabeu and he told France Football there are no excuses for failure.

“He likes football and he has the right qualities. He started with nice wins at the Bernabeu and I’m happy for him. But it is only the beginning and the road is long. At Real Madrid, the pressure is very strong. You’re never completely calm,” the former France international stated.

 

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New York City midfielder Frank Lampard says Real Madrid striker Cristiano Ronaldo should follow in his footsteps and join an MLS side one day as it would suit him and his lifestyle.

Lampard joined the MLS side in the summer to add to the growing list of former stars from the European league to head Stateside to play their football. Ex-Real Madrid playmaker Kaka, Steven Gerrard, Didier Drogba and Andre Pirlo are all playing for various MLS teams.

Speaking to CNN Sport, Lampard urged Ronaldo and Barcelona star Leo Messi to join him once they decide to end the careers at their current clubs.

“I think Messi and Ronaldo moving to MLS is a real possibility. I think they’ll want to, and I think they’ll be embraced if they came here. Cristiano, particularly, I could see playing in America. I think the lifestyle would suit him. He’s a showman and a great player,” he commented.

Gerrard echoed his former international team mate’s thoughts, adding: “I hope they will come to MLS. I’d certainly recommend it, not just to those two but to players around the world. I’m sure they’ll enjoy the life on and off the pitch because America’s a super country to come and work in and enjoy.

“I know from playing with players in the English dressing rooms at home that everybody is talking about MLS now. Maybe five or 10 years ago it wasn’t on the radar so much, but it is now, and I’m talking about big players.”

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Zinedine Zidane has claimed that despite having a difficult task he believes he will be able to triumph at Real Madrid. In an interview with GQ magazine the Los Blancos manager analysed his first weeks as the first team coach.

“As a manager I think I always know what the players need, the moments they need me to be there for them. The simple fact of staying by their side is enough, and there is no need to say many words to solve certain problems. Sometimes for communicating effectively you just have to be silent, and that I can do well,” Zidane said.

Asked about his chances of triumphing at Real Madrid, the Frenchman confessed: “I know what I want. It is difficult, but I can do it.”

The former Los Merengues player also spoke about his current state of form: “My body is not what it used to be. If I force myself more than usual, I suffer. When I play a game, even if it’s an exhibition, everything hurts and it’s hard to recover. But I don’t have any problems with my age. I’ve never had complexes about my hair, and I know myself too well.”

Asked about his retirement, Zidane admitted he could have played two more years. “But I knew I could lack the adrenalin of big games, and I made that decision,” he explained.

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Athletic Bilbao centre-back Aymeric Laporte has become one of the most sought-after young defenders in Europe. Many clubs have been pursuing his signing for the past months, and now Real Madrid have also joined the battle, according to reports from Spanish sports website Fichajes.net.

Manchester United and Barcelona have shown a great interest in signing the 21-year-old, but Florentino Perez has also set his eyes on him and that could increase the player’s price significantly.

Laporte has insisted he wants to remain at Athletic. However, it seems clear that he will receive more than one offer next summer.

According to reports, Athletic would prefer to sell him to a Premier League side to avoid reinforcing one of their La Liga rivals. Thus, Manchester United would have more chances of landing him.

Laporte’s current market value according to TransferMarkt is 25 million euros, but his buy-out clause is 50 million. Athletic will expect the club who wants the Frenchman to pay the whole clause plus the corresponding taxes.

The footballer has a running contract with the Basque side until 2019. He arrived at Bilbao at the age of 15 and has grown in Athletic’s youth system. He made his debut for the first team in 2012 and has made 130 appearances ever since.

* Stay tuned at Real Madrid News for all the latest updates on Aymeric Laporte.

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Real Madrid defender Pepe will leave the club after nine seasons at the Santiago Bernabeu, according to reports from Spanish newspaper Sport.

The Portugal international is about to turn 33 and he is experiencing injury problems. He is currently on the sidelines due to plantar fasciitis. His contract expires in June 2017, but Los Blancos directors have reportedly decided to sell him next summer and are already looking for a substitute.

Other Real Madrid transfer rumours include Los Blancos still interested in Sergio Aguero and Zlatan Ibrahimovic making himself available for Zinedine Zidane.

According to ESPN, the Los Blancos manager wants to sign a striker who can complement Karim Benzema, and Florentino Perez’s favourite is Aguero. The Manchester City man has been a Los Merengues target for years, and next summer they could try it again.

Meanwhile, Spanish journalist Eduardo Inda has claimed that Zlatan Ibrahimovic has made himself available to play at Real Madrid. The former director of Marca has revealed that Ibra wants to play under Zidane’s management and has contacted the Frenchman to fulfil “his dream of playing at Real.”

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Cristiano Ronaldo has revealed he has already given some thought to his career when he eventually retires from football and says he’d be interested in being an actor.

Real Madrid’s all time leading scorer still has three years to run on his current deal at the Santiago Bernabeu and with rumours that he’s interested in a move to the MLS after that, hanging up his boots may still be some time away.

The 31-year-old was the feature of a documentary called Ronaldo last year and he’s also been in plenty of adverts during his career giving him exposure to working in front of the camera.

But he admitted that if he were to go down the acting route – just like Eric Cantona and Vinnie Jones before him – he’d need to have plenty of guidance and training to be taken seriously.

He told Sacoor Brothers: “I would like to learn being surrounded by good actors because only then will I learn since it is an area I do not control because it has nothing to do with football. Why not? It’s not my goal at the moment, but I have had some invitations.”

And fan worried a switch to acting will happen soon need not lose any sleep though. Ronaldo continued: “I feel good, I feel young, so I want to continue. I do not put goals as a football player, only the body will tell and the mind also. I want to enjoy and win more at the collective level and individual level.”

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Chelsea start Eden Hazard will turn down the overtures of PSG this summer in favour of a move to Real Madrid, according to reports.

The Daily Telegraph says the Belgian international is hoping the Santiago Bernabeu side will make a move for him at the end of the campaign. Should they fail to, he would stay at Chelsea rather than move elsewhere.

The 25-year-old was one of Chelsea’s outstanding performers last season as the won the Premier League title. But this year he has found the going tougher and his form and confidence have been below par.

There are signs however that he is coming back to his best as evidenced with his goal against Manchester City in the FA Cup at the weekend.

Hazard’s idol while growing up was Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane and the 1998 World Cup winner is also a fan of the attacking player. With a transfer ban potentially coming into force after the summer should the club not be successful in it’s appeal, there is a possibility Real could go on a huge spending spree before being unable to register players for the next two windows.

Since joining Chelsea in 2012, Hazard has scored 51 goals in 196 appearances in all competitions.

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Real Madrid legend Iker Casillas has hit out at Jose Mourinho’s management during his last season in charge of Los Blancos.

The Portuguese boss, currently out of work after being sacked by Chelsea earlier this season, spent three years in charge of the Santiago Bernabeu between 2010 and 2013. And while he managed to guide the club to success in La Liga and the Copa del Rey, his last season in the hotseat was marred by fallings out with his own players, staff, opposition bosses and football authorities.

Casillas was controversially dropped by Mourinho at the midway mark in the season in favour of Diego Lopez after the manager believed him to be the source of dressing room leaks to the press – his partner is famous sports journalist Sara Carbonero.

Speaking to TV station TVE, the keeper, who spent 25 years at Los Blancos before making a switch to Porto in the summer, stated: “Our relationship started to change due to the fact that the team did not do well in the 2012-13 season. You know how it is, when things go well we are all tall and handsome and we are the big boys.

“When it goes wrong, you don’t know what is what. In the end, it is in those moments when you have to come together.”

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Alvaro Morata

Alvaro Morata wants to stay at Juventus and is not considering the possibility of returning to Real Madrid despite recent reports that suggested that Los Blancos would buy him back next summer.

The former Los Merengues striker spoke to German newspaper Sport Bild about the possibility of moving back to Madrid: “Two months ago I signed a new contract with Juventus for five years. I feel great satisfaction and motivation to stay here. When I was at Real Madrid my mind wasn’t clear.”

There’s a buy-back clause in Morata’s contract that would allow Los Blancos to buy him back next summer for 32 million euros. Sources from Spain have claimed that Florentino Perez wants to exert that clause only to sell him again, as they believe there are several clubs that could be willing to offer around 50 million.

Thus, Madrid would earn 18 million in a few weeks, and Morata would possibly end up moving to the Premier League. Manchester United and Liverpool have shown their interest, according to Spanish sports newspaper Marca.

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Spanish press has reported that James Rodriguez is unhappy with his current situation at Real Madrid after he was not chosen to start last Sunday against Malaga.

Zinedine Zidane decided to bench the Colombia international, and introduced Mateo Kovacic and Jese Rodriguez in the starting eleven.

James was also a substitute in Zidane’s first games as Los Blancos manager. The Frenchman explained that the playmaker “has talent, but needs to contribute more in defense.”

When Gareth Bale suffered a calf injury, James became a starter again, and even scored some important goals, like last week against Athletic Bilbao.

However, against Malaga, with Bale and Karim Benzema injured, there were two spots in the starting eleven for the usual substitutes and none of them was for the Colombian.

According to reports, James is very upset about this and he could be considering to leave the club if his situation does not change.

The latest Real Madrid transfer rumours suggested that Manchester United and Paris Saint Germain would be very interested in signing him. However, Florentino Perez is not willing to let the Colombian go.

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