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Andrija Zivkovic Real Madrid

Serbian wonderkid Andrija Zivkovic has rejected an offer from Real Madrid to move to the Santiago Bernabeu, the player’s father has revealed.

Los Blancos launched a 15-million-bid for the 19-year-old midfielder. Partizan Belgrade could have possibly accepted it, but Zivkovic’s father opposed to it.

Los Merengues were planning on signing Zivkovic and loan him to a third club so he could keep developing his game, but the father believed that would ruin his son’s career.

“For your information, one of the biggest clubs in the world, the most famous in the world, Real Madrid, offered 15 million euros to sign Andrija. But they wanted to loan him! I said no. Not for the money, but because that was going to ruin the kid’s career. Nobody is going to destroy my child’s life and they are not going to do with him as they please, like he was a toy,” Zivkovic’s father has stated on a letter.

Zivkovic is a talented forward who has become one of the most sought-after footballers in Eastern Europe. He can play both as a playmaker or as a winger. He made his professional debut for Partizan in 2013 and quickly became the leader of the team.

The 19-year-old is the youngest player to make a senior appearance for the Serbian national team. He is also the youngest Partizan Belgrade captain in history. In the last three seasons, he has made 92 appearances for the Serbia side, scoring 24 goals.

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Leaked documents surrounding the transfer of Mesut Ozil from Real Madrid to Arsenal in 2013 show the 10-time Champions League winners have a buy-back clause which would prevent him moving to another La Liga side.

The details, published by Football Leaks, showed that if Arsenal were to receive an offer from another Spanish club they would have to inform Los Blancos, who would be able to match that offer and buy the German back ahead of anyone else – meaning he stays out of the hands of Barcelona.

The leak, which is yet to be verified and one which neither clubs has commented on, also showed the amount that the Gunners paid to land the German World Cup winner.

The FA Cup holders for the past two years paid 44 million euros to sign him. In addition the the fee, there are also clauses that trigger additional payments – including a Champions League qualification clause. Every time Arsenal qualify for Europe’s most prestigious club competition over the first six years of Ozil’s time in north London, they pay 760,000 euros. They have made two payments in two years so far.

Ozil has been in outstanding form for Arsene Wenger’s side this season, creating 16 assists in the Premier League as the Emirates Stadium outfit look to lift their first domestic title in 12 years.

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Former Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon says former boss Rafa Benitez was a ‘dead man walking’ from the moment he walked in the doors at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Benitez was fired earlier this month after just seven months in the role with reports of arguments with senior players. Fans and players were also unhappy with the playing style – deemed too defensive for a club so used to playing a ore swashbuckling type of football.

Speaking on Omnisport, Calderon revealed Benitez was never wanted from the start and was the fourth choice to replace Carlo Ancelotti last summer. Jose Mourinho, Joachim Low and Jurgen Klopp were all preferred ahead of the former youth team coach.

“Benitez was a coach who was already a dead man walking from the start at Real Madrid. That’s because he was not the chosen one, he was the fourth option. They tried to bring Mourinho but the Portuguese did not want to go back. After that they tried to get Joachim Low, and he didn’t want to come either. The third person they tried to get was [Jurgen] Klopp, and the German also rejected,” the ex-president stated.

He added: “So the last option was Rafa Benitez. They brought him in even though he didn’t suit Real Madrid’s style.”

 

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Real Madrid goalkeeper Keylor Navas says the players are not happy with the draw at Real Betis but have to keep looking forward.
Karim Benzema leveled in the 70th minute after Alvaro Cejudo had given the hosts an early lead. Real then on to miss a number of chances to pick up all three points. The draw means they now sit four points behind Barcelona and Atletico de Madrid and with plenty of work to do to make up ground in the title race.
“We cannot be happy without the win. It is necessary to be aware that we have to win. The team worked and tried to get a result from the game. In the second half we worked really well but they also defended well and had a move in the first half that they were able to make the most of,” the Costa Ricn goalkeeper said after the final whistle.
And Navas continued: “All the points that you fail to win are important, but we have to keep moving forward with the upcoming games. It is important to be clear about what we need to do to win the remaining games. We are not going to change anything, we all know what we need to do to win and we are going to try and do that better in the next game. We have to keep going and really stand up for the team, we are confident”.

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Real Madrid midfielder James Rodriguez has said that a lot of the talk in the media about him being unhappy at the club is untrue.

The Colombian did not have a good relationship with former boss Rafa Benitez and was unhappy about a lack of playing time.

Reports this weekend linked the 2014 World Cup top scorer with a potential switch to Manchester United as he looks to get regular first team football once more.

But after featuring the draw against Real Betis on Sunday, Rodriguez told reporters a lot of what had been written was simply untrue.

“I want to be fit in order to help everyone. Everything that is being said is untrue. I am relaxed and feel good. I always give everything in training. Those around me know that I am a great professional. I train strongly every day. It is also necessary to say sorry because people make mistakes. It was nothing serious, unlike what people are saying,” he stated.

And when quizzed on his relationship with new manager Zinedine Zidane, he added: “I think that the change has been good and we are all doing well with him, everyone listens more to the new manager. Zidane is the one in charge and I have to pay attention to him. I have a good relationship with him, we have talked a lot and everything is fine.”

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John stones

Real Madrid and Barcelona are among the clubs that are fighting to sign Everton defender John Stones, according to the latest transfer rumours.

Many European giants have shown an interest in signing the Englishman, including Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea.

Los Blancos have been eyeing Stones for the past few months, and two weeks ago it became known that they are preparing a bid to bring the Everton man next summer.

As it usually happens when Real Madrid show an interest in any player, Barcelona have quickly joined the race to sign him, possibly with the only goal of interfering in the negotiations.

The 21-year-old has proved to be a solid defender with a great future ahead. Any of the Spanish giants would benefit from signing him, but it want be easy for them to convince Everton.

The Liverpool side are not willing to let their star player leave, unless they receive an irresistible offer. Sources from Britain have revealed that Everton could agree to sell for 50 million euros. However, it seems unlikely that any of the two Spanish giants could reach that ammount.

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Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane says he is taking the positives from the performance against Real Betis despite his players dropping two more important points in La Liga on Sunday.

Los Blancos rescued a point through a 70th minute Karim Benzema goal after Cejudo had given the hosts an early lead. Real went on to miss a number of clear-cut chances with Pepe, Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo all guilty of wasting opportunities to win the three points.

The draw means Real are four points behind Barcelona and Atletico de Madrid in La Liga. The Nou Camp side has a game in hand too so could extend their lead to seven points – a huge advantage even at this stage in the season.

But speaking to reporters after the match, Zidane said he was pleased with aspects of teh performance and feels that despite the draw, the club is moving in the right direction.  “We failed to make a good start. The beginning was difficult and then in the game we created a lot more, but when you have chances you need to put them away. Football is like that. If you don’t score that can happen. I will take away the positive elements and I cannot blame my players for anything following the game we had. I am very proud of what they did tonight. We just missed out on getting the three points,” he commented.
And he added: “I have seen the side do better on a physical level, especially in the second half and at the end of the game they did very well. We are moving forward, and we have a full week, the third, to work.”

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Manchester United are nearing an agreement with Wolfsburg to sign Swiss left-back Ricardo Rodriguez, according to reports from Britain.

Rodriguez is one of the main candidates to reinforce Real Madrid defence, since Los Blancos are looking for a man who can give Marcelo some rest.

Wolfsburg’s sports director Klaus Allofs recently said that Los Merengues “could forget” about signing Rodriguez, explaining they were not willing to sell. However, The Sun has claimed the Switzerland international will leave Germany this month and head to Manchester.

The Red Devils are in the midst of a defensive injury crisis and are seeking to bring a versatile player. Rodriguez, who can play both as a centre-back or as a left-back, seems like a perfect fit.

The 23-year-old is one of the most sought-after defenders in Europe. Any club willing to sign him, would have to offer between 25 and 30 million euros.

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Real Madrid defender Pepe claimed Los Blancos failed to beat Betis on Sunday because their rival got lucky in their early goal.

The Portuguese defender said Real were the best team on the field and deserved to win: “They got lucky in the goal. We had plenty of chances to score, we controlled the game, but we missed many opportunities. However, we will keep working and fighting. Nothing is easy. The most important is that we are working well and we are understanding the Zidane’s message.”

“It would have been better to win, but we are doing things right, we have had plenty of possession and chances, and we have to continue like this,” the Portuguese international added.

Asked whether the players are getting on better with Zidane than with Benitez, Pepe said: “Benitez deserves respect for his history as a manager and as a person. Each of them has their way of working, and now we must understand Zidane’s to move forward.”

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Zinedine Zidane dropped his first points since he took on the manager job at Real Madrid. Los Blancos failed to recover from Betis early goal and only managed to savage a point thanks to Karim Benzema’s strike in the second half.

Betis were very intense in the first minutes. Ruben Castro had a great chance to score with a powerful strike from close range, but Navas got down to make the save. In the follow-up, Fabian nudged the ball to Cejudo, who hammered an incredible shot into the top corner.

The goal was a big blow for Los Merengues. Betis were exerting a bit pressure and they were struggling to dominate possession. Yet, things started to change as the hosts started to get tired.

Los Blancos had a good opportunity to level as Benzema set up Ronaldo inside the box, but the Portuguese fired wide of the post.

In the next play, Pepe jumped unmarked inside the Betis box to meet a corner from Kroos, but his header misses the target.

There was a penalty call before the break, as Benzema went down inside the box under a challenge from Petros. It looked like a clear penalty, but the referee was not interested.

The visitors improved after the break. With Betis totally exhausted, Zidane men barely let their rival touch the ball during the second half. However, Real were not very lucky tonight.

Marcelo found Carvajal inside the box, but the right-back sent his effort wide of the post.

In the next play, Benzema made it 1-1 as he received a pass from James and fired home from close range.

Los Blancos had plenty of chances to complete their come-back in the last twenty minutes, but Adan saved his team. He denied James, Benzema and Ronaldo with three superb saves to secure the draw.

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