Neymar has demanded three players be replaced at Real Madrid before he will consider a move to the Bernabeu according to reports from Spain.

Florentino Perez is expected to finance an overhaul of the squad in the next transfer window and it’s been widely reported that Brazilian star Neymar is the number one target for Real Madrid in the summer.

A report on Spanish website Dario Gol claims that negotiations between Perez and Neymar’s agent are underway with the Paris Saint-Germain forward’s suggestion one of the points of discussion. It’s alleged Neymar feels the club should target three new players and finance the signings by axing goalkeeper Keylor Navas, winger Gareth Bale and striker Karim Benzema.

Dario Gol claims Neymar believes the funds from their sale should be used to sign Chelsea’s Eden Hazard or Mo Salah from Liverpool. It’s also rumoured the Brazilian wants Real to secure the services of Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea or Chelsea’s Thibaut Courtois. Finally, Neymar would like to be accompanied by PSG teammate Marquinhos to play in front of the new shot stopper.

Whether or not the Brazilian’s demands will be met it seems Neymar is destined to leave PSG in the summer. The forward has been accused of “spitting” on the French club by former French international Christophe Duggary for not returning to watch his teammates lift the Ligue 1 trophy.

Neymar flew to Brazil for an operation on a fractured metatarsal in February and has not returned to Paris since. The Brazilian stunned the football world when leaving Barcelona in the lurch for a £200m deal last summer. Although the forward has been successful on the pitch the move has not worked out so well off it. With PSG set to offload this summer to meet FFP requirements, it looks increasingly likely that Neymar will depart in the next transfer window.

Real remain on course to win a third consecutive Champions League title following Wednesday’s 2-1 victory against Bayern Munich in the semi final first leg at the Allianz Arena. However, Los Blancos’ form in La Liga has been little short of disastrous with Zinedine Zidane’s men 15 points adrift of Barcelona.

Real star, Cristiano Ronaldo is rumoured to have threatened to leave if the squad is not improved for next season and Zidane’s role as manager is not certain to continue beyond the end of the season if rumours are to be believed.

Marco Asensio scored the winning goal as Real Madrid came from behind to beat Bayern Munich 2-1 in the first leg of the Champions League semi final at the Allianz Arena in Munich.

Los Blancos took another step towards a third consecutive Champions League title when half-time substitute Asensio coolly struck the winning goal on 57 minutes. The home side opened the scoring with Joshua Kimmich beating Keylor Navas at his near post in the 28th minute.

Bayern lost defender Jerome Boateng and winger Arjen Robben to injury in the first half before Marcello put the visitors level in the 44th minute. Zinedine Zidane introduced Marco Asensio for the second half with Isco making way and the decision paid off when 22-year-old Asensio took advantage of sloppy play by Rafinha to place his shot beyond the reach of Sven Ulreich.

Real inflicted Bayern’s first home defeat of the season and the Bundesliga champions only have themselves to blame. Bayern have fallen at the semi final stage in three of the past four seasons and manager Juup Heynkes was left ruing wasted opportunities and slack defending.

The home side had 60% of possession and wasted numerous opportunities in front of goal with Robert Lewandowski, Thomas Muller and Franck Ribery all being guilty of missing good chances.

“We had so many chances, it was strange. I’ve never seen us have so many chances in a semi-final, especially against a team like Real Madrid,” said Heynkes.

“We simply weren’t clinical enough and we gifted Real their goals.

“We want to do whatever it takes to put this result right next week. It’s our duty. We didn’t deserve to lose today, so I’m confident.”

The second leg will be played at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday 1 May and Real manager Zidane concedes “the tie is far from over”.

“We’re very satisfied with the result, but we had a lot of problems in the first few minutes trying to take control of the game,” Zidane said.

“The tie is far from over, it’s more than possible that Bayern could win in the Bernabeu, but we are very happy to have won 2-1 in Munich.”

Real won 3-0 at Juventus in the quarter-final, but the Serie A champions pulled the tie level in Madrid only for Los Blancos to clinch their place in the semi finals thanks to Cristiano Ronaldo’s stoppage-time penalty.

“We know that the tie cannot be over after one leg,” he added. “After the Juventus match, we know we’ll need to approach the Bayern result differently, otherwise things could go badly for us.

“We can’t have another night like that.”

Gareth Bale has been talking to the German press ahead of Real Madrid’s Champions League clash against Bayern Munich and hinted he could be interested in a move to the Bundesliga champions.

The Real Madrid wide man is the subject of transfer speculation at the Bernabeu and told Sport Bild it was ‘an honour’ to be linked with a move to Bayern. Bale has fallen out of favour with Real coach Zinedine Zidane and has only started in three games in the Champions League this season, fuelling rumours he could be leaving Spain in the summer.

In an interview prior to the first leg of the Champions League semi final in Munich, Bale hinted he would consider a move to the German giants. “You can never rule out anything in football,” he said.

“Currently I play at Real Madrid and I enjoy that. Bayern have a fantastic squad and in the past they have always been one of the most successful clubs in Europe. It’s an honour for everyone to be linked with this club. But as of now, I am a Real Madrid player.”

Bale has a contract tying him to the Bernabeu until 2020 and at 29 years of age, there are not many clubs in Europe that could afford to match his terms should he leave Real Madrid.

The Welshman believes he still has a lot to offer at the top level of domestic football and points to his record of 11 goals in 22 games this season.

“I think an average of a goal every second match is not bad at all, “ he told Bild.

“Still, there is always potential to develop further. This also applies to me. To be honest, I always want more. More games and more goals.”

Bale, a three-time Champions League winner, was benched for the duration of the first leg of the quarter final tie against Juventus and was substituted off at half time in the second leg. He wasn’t selected for the trip to Malaga the following Sunday and was only given 20 minutes in Madrid’s last match against Real Betis.

Real have been linked with a number of strikers as the club looks to provide Karim Benzema with competition for his place. Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski has been linked with a move to the Spanish side and Bale thinks the Polish striker would be a good fit at the Bernabeu.

“Lewandowski has the quality for Real,” said Bale.

“He is one of the best strikers in the world, he guarantees goals for both Bayern and his national team. We know what a serious threat he poses in the games against us.”

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez caused tongues to start wagging when praising goalkeeper Keylor Navas at a fans event last week.

It’s been rumoured that Real were on the lookout for a new shot stopper but the Daily Express’ Aaron Stokes suggests Perez may have used it as an opportunity to play down the club’s interest in Manchester United’s David De Gea and Thibaut Courtois of Chelsea.

The two keepers have been linked with Real Madrid for a number of years and the Spanish giants famously missed out on getting De Gea due to an error with the fax machine in 2015. The Spain number one is currently in talks with United over a new deal which could keep him in England until 2023 so now would be a good time for Los Blancos to follow up any interest.

Courtois is in a similar position with Chelsea but is said to be stalling over a new deal which has been fuelling rumours the Belgian stopper is holding out for a move to the Bernabeu.

31-year-old Navas has made it clear he wants to see out the remaining two years of his contract at Real Madrid but pressure has been mounting for the club to bring in a top quality keeper to replace him as first choice.

De Gea, Courtois and Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak have been put forward as possible targets in a major rebuilding program at the Bernabeu this summer.

What did Perez say about Navaz at the Supporters Group?

Perez attended the 30th anniversary event for the Ramon Mendoza Supporters Group where Navaz was inducted as an honorary member of the fans’ group.

Presenting the honour, Perez said: “This club has had a very important gesture as it is to name one of our players, Keylor Navas, honorary partner.

“I want to tell you, Keylor, that you have won the love and affection of all the Madridistas.

“Simply, because you earned it with your talent, that you have a lot, and also with your professionalism, but also with your behaviour, because you have identified a lot with our values.

“It is a pride for all to have you porter, whatever they say about, or whatever they say others but in the Madrid you know what that is, the daily work.

“You work a lot and you will be with us for many years.”

Arsene Wenger’s announcement that we will quit at the end of the season could have repercussions for Real Madrid with reports that Florentino Perez is concerned about who Arsenal will target to replace the Frenchman.

It’s been reported by Spanish outlet Don Balon, that Perez has always wanted Germany’s Joachim Low as Zinedine Zidane’s replacement but Low and Max Allegri at Juventus are understood to be the top targets for the North London club.

There is some uncertainty about Zidane’s future at Real Madrid beyond the end of the season with the possibility of a sabbatical in the offing or he may even be sacked if Real Madrid fail to win the Champions League for the third successive year.

Low is currently making preparations for the German national side to defend their title at the World Cup in Russia this summer. His work with the senior side has generated a lot of interest from domestic clubs and Bayern Munich, who have been without a permanent manager since September, are thought to be holding out for his services.

Zidane signed a contract extension in January which runs until 2020, but that counts for little at the Santiago Bernabeu where Perez has hired 11 managers in two spells spanning 15 years as president. The Frenchman has won eight trophies in his two years in charge of Los Blancos but is suffering a tough season in which Real posed no threat to Barcelona’s successful league title campaign.

Much hinges on Real’s performance in the Champions League where they are bidding for a record third consecutive title in the modern era. Los Blancos have drawn the most difficult semi final tie against Bayern Munich who they meet in the first leg in Germany on Wednesday before playing the second leg in Madrid on 1 May.

With the World Cup taking place this summer, there will be a number of managerial opportunities opening up at domestic and international level. 58-year-old Low has been in charge of Germany for 10 years and, although keeping cards close to his chest at the moment, may feel the time is right for the challenge of managing one of Europe’s top club sides. The vacancies at Bayern Munich and Arsenal may force Perez’ hand as the Real Madrid president could be reluctant to risk missing the opportunity of securing his long term target.

With mounting speculation over the future of Gareth Bale, Zinedine Zidane could make a move for Eden Hazard if the Welsman leaves Real Madrid in the summer.

Real’s interest in Hazard cooled after some lacklustre displays in the Europe and the prohibitive €100million price tag demanded by Chelsea. However, it’s understood Zidane remains keen on the Belgian and could be given carte blanche to rebuild this summer after being quiet in two previous transfer windows.

Ronaldo is one of the influential people at the Bernabeu demanding the squad is strengthened and with Zidane losing patience with Bale, there could be scope for a deal.

The Welsh international was again overlooked for a place in the starting eleven for Real’s home game against Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday increasing speculation that Bale could be leaving this summer.

Bale’s relationship with Zidane as been on the wane since he was left out of the team to face Paris Saint-Germain in the first-leg of the Champions League last-16 tie in February. According to AS Espana, Bale was substituted in the Champions League quarter-final second leg against Juventus after responding with a grin to Ronaldo’s request for more effort when the team was 2-0 down.

Bale didn’t travel to the following weekend game at Malaga when Zidane rested four players who featured against Juventus and the alarm bells sounded louder when Zidane’s full-strength lineup against Bilbao revealed Bale was on the bench. The 28-year-old was only given 20 minutes and was the first player to run down the tunnel at the end of the disappointing display.

Bale has been dismissive of a move when he has a contract until 2022 but the situation this season may cause a change of heart. With the form of attacking midfielders Marco Asensio, Lucas Vazquez and Isco, Real’s transfer priorities this summer will be to replace striker Karim Benzema and goalkeeper Keylor Navas.

However, if Bale were to accept an offer from Manchester United, who are thought to be interested, then the door might open for Hazard.

James Rodriguez was a member of the Real Madrid side that eliminated Bayern Munich in last season’s Champions League quarter-finals. The Columbian has since switched sides and insists Bayern will not have revenge on their minds when the clubs oppose each other in this season’s semi-finals.

In an interview with TZ newspaper, James said: “We shouldn’t see the two games against Madrid as revenge or rematches from last year.

“What we must do is look at them as simply being two more games on the way to the final and playing a team like Real Madrid, we must be in the best possible shape.”

James, who is on loan at Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich, was being interviewed about his thoughts of playing against his parent club and being opposed to Cristiano Ronaldo. Part of the interview can be found on TZ’s online edition.

“We must believe in ourselves, remain calm and put up two strong games, but it won’t be easy because they know what it takes to fight for this title every year and are making history,” he told the Munich-based paper.

“But history has also shown that Bayern know how to face these games and we aren’t going to hide away from anything.”

When asked his views on Real’s late penalty, the Columbian skipped over the controversy to point out it was down to the team’s great work ethic earning its just rewards.

“That’s Real Madrid, it is what the club does. They want to win every game and try until the last minute,” he explained.

“They tried until the final second and their efforts were rewarded with the penalty. If you keep trying until the end, you’ll get your rewards.”

When it came to discussing Ronaldo, the former Porto man could not hide the admiration for his old playing partner but warned against focusing solely on the Champions League’s all time top scorer.  

“He’s a goalscoring machine who is always there whenever he is needed so we have to be strong as a team to try to make sure he doesn’t have his best day,” he continued.

“But it is the same with other players. Real aren’t just Ronaldo, they have great players in other positions and what’s clear is that it won’t be easy.”

The first Champions League semi final takes place at the Allianz Arena in Munich on Wednesday 25th April and the return leg will be played at the Bernabeu on Tuesday 1st May.

The teams met in the quarter-final of last season’s competition when the tie was decided in extra time in the Bernabeu after both legs finished 1-2 in normal time. Ronaldo scored two extra time goals to complete a hat-trick on the night with Marco Asensio finishing the reply to Bayern’s two away goals.