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Liverpool are preparing a 50-million euros bid to bring Karim Benzema to Anfield Road next summer, according to British newspaper Daily Star.

The Reds sold Luis Suarez to Barcelona last August for 81 million euros and brought Mario Balotelli in for 20 million. Manager Brendan Rodgers is willing to reinforce his attack with the French striker.

However, it seems highly unlikely that Carlo Ancelotti will let Benzema leave any time soon.

There were rumours last summer of a possible exit for the Frenchman as Los Blancos were eyeing a move for Radamel Falcao. But the Colombian didn’t arrive and Benzema has proved to be a crucial piece of Ancelotti’s starting eleven.

Benzema has been key for Los Merengues to recover their best game in the last matches, and was praised by Spanish press after his superb performance in Real’s 0-2 victory at Villarreal.

Even if Madrid signed another world-class striker next summer, Benzema is still Florentino Perez favourite. Los Merengues president brought the Frenchman from Olympique Lyonnais as his own personal choice, and will very unlikely let him go even if Liverpool make an important offer.

Benzema arrived to Real Madrid in 2009 and has scored 73 goals in 163 apperances for Los Blancos.

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Iker Casillas is one of the best goalkeepers in history, according to former Real Madrid team mate Roberto Carlos.

The club captain ha endured some difficult moments in recent months with some sections of the Madrid fans calling for him to be dropped in favour of Keylor Navas. Casillas was also part of the Spain horror show at this summer’s World Cup and his reputation took a hit as the former winners were knocked out in the first round.

But Roberto Carlos, who played alongside Casillas for 11 years at the Santiago Bernabeu, said the 33-year-old should be considered one of the best keepers in the history of the game.

Speaking to Madrid-based paper AS, he stated: “Iker is a club institution. He’s worn the shirt for 15 years, won many titles and had a lot of success. He’s an idol, one of the best keepers in the history of football.”

And he added: “Fans sometimes oppose the players. It’s something very normal. But Casillas has a lot of credit at Madrid.”

The ex-Brazil player had words of praise for his compatriot Marcelo too, who has enjoyed a fine run of form this term.

“He’s playing well. He’s a perfect player for his position. I think he’s one of the best left-sided players around at the moment.”

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Real Madrid and AC Milan will play a friendly match on December 30th at The Sevens Stadium at Dubai, the two clubs have announced.

Legends Emilio Butragueno and Franco Baresi represented the two clubs at the announcement in the United Arab Emirates.

Hamad Mohammed Bin Mejren, from the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, admitted he was delighted to host this game: “We welcome two footballing giants. Not only has 2014 been a record year for football, but also for our city, which is incredibly proud to be playing host to Real Madrid and AC Milan. 30 December is a very exciting date for Dubai.”

The match will see Carlo Ancelotti face his life club, where he was a player and a manager for 13 years. He will re-encounter with Filippo Inzaghi, former Milan player who is now head coach at the Italian side.

This match will pit the two clubs with most wins in the European Cup. Real Madrid have ten, while Milan have lifted seven.

The last time the two European giants met, Los Blancos breezed past Milan 5-1 in a pre-season friendly in New York in 2012.

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Real Madrid legend Hugo Sanchez has described fellow country and forward Chicarito as a ‘phenomenon’.

The 26-year-old Mexican arrived at the Santiago Bernabeu on transfer deadline day on a season-long loan from Manchester United. The forward scored 59 goals in 154 games for the Red Devils but his chances of first team football were limited at Old Trafford following the arrival of Radamel Falcao.

But Chicharito endeared himself to Madridistas last weekend with a brace against Deportivo La Coruna – something that will put pressure on Karim Benzema to get his regular scoring boots on or face losing his place in the side.

Speaking to Madrid-based sports daily, AS, Sanchez had high words of praise for Javier Hernandez, who is hoping his spell at the club lasts longer than just one season.

He said:  “He’s a phenomenon. He is very fast, intuitive, with movement speed and shoots well with left, right and head. When given more time and chances, hopefully his effectiveness is the [level] required in Madrid. In this team enough chances are created and that will help Chicharito.”

Sanchez is a legendary figure at the Santiago Bernabeu having scored 207 times in 283 games during his time in the Spanish capital.

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Real Madrid earned 140 million euros in television money last season, almost four times as much as German giants Bayern Munich, a new report has said.

According to figures presented in La Nueva Espana, Los Blancos and rivals Barcelona earned much bigger deals than other clubs across Europe because of the lack of a collective placement in place in La Liga meaning they are free to negotiate their own deals.

The report said that of the 755 million euros secured by the La Liga clubs in total, Barcelona and Real Madrid earned 34% of that between them. Interestingly, Valencia (48 million) earned more money from TV rights than champions Atletico de Madrid (42 million).

The Premier League remains the biggest draw for TV companies, with the 20 clubs earning a total of 1.9 billion euros between them. Runners-up Liverpool secured the most (117 million euros) with champions Manchester City raking in 116 million euros.

Cardiff City, who were relegated back down to the Championship earned 74.5 million euros, more than Bayern Munich (40 million euros) and French champions PSG (44 million euros).

Over in Italy, Juventus were the highest-earners, with 94 million euros, with Inter second on 80.4 million euros and city rivals AC Milan third, on 77.9 million euros.

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Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane has said he is delighted to have helped the team pick up three vital points at Villarreal.

Los Blancos saw off the Yellow Submarine with two goals in the first half at El Madrigal, Luka Modric and Cristian Ronaldo finding the net. The team also enjoyed their first clean sheet in the league season, something the French defender told journalists was an important thing.

Last season, Real escaped with a draw from their visit to Castellon, and the young defender told reporters the win on Saturday afternoon was significant to keep their momentum going.

“Playing against Villarreal is always difficult. They are three important points and now we have to keep on moving forward. Casillas is in very good shape, today we kept a clean sheet and that is important for us. It’s good for the team,” Varane told journalists after the match.

And the France international added: “Cristiano is in really good shape and that is very good for the team. I am too, I’ve played three games in a row and I hope I can continue to do that. My job is to play and try to do the best I can. I feel happy at the club.”

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Iker Casillas has said he is delighted the Real Madrid kept a clean sheet at Villarreal as well as picking up the three points.

Luka Modric Cristiano Ronaldo both scored in the first half as Los Blancos secured a third consecutive win in La Liga to keep the pressure on league leaders Barcelona. Before the game, much had been made of Madrid’s vulnerability at the back and lack of clean sheets.

Speaking to journalists afterwards, Casillas, who was recalled to the side after sitting out the win over Elche midweek, said it was a boost for the team to have a shut out.

“The other day against Deportivo, the 2-8 game was a strange match, very end to end. Today we learned our lesson from that day and we tried not to give away chances, despite Villarreal really taking the game to us and attacking well. You also have to be well organised so as not to have difficult moments,” he said.

And he added: “El Madrigal is a difficult ground to come to, last year we had to fight to come away with something and we came here with the aim of keeping up our positive run of results and getting the win. The team had to defend and we kept a clean sheet in a difficult ground and against a difficult team.”

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Marco Reus

Germany midfielder Marco Reus could join compatriots Sami Khedira and Toni Kroos at the Santiago Bernabeu on a free transfer from Borussia Dortmund next summer, reports suggest.

The playmaker’s contract expires in 2016, and he has rejected the club’s advances to talk about a new deal, meaning the Borussia board have made the decision to cash in on him in the summer rather than lose him on a free transfer at the end of his contract.

Bayern Munich are thought to be keen on the player but the relations between the two clubs have soured in recent years after the Bavarians took striker Robert Lewandowski and midfielder Mario Gotze to the Allianz Arena.

Comments by Bayern president Franz Beckenbauer have also angered Borussia officials. Earlier this summer he said: “If you can get a player of his class [Reus], you need to try it. If he doesn’t go to Bayern in 2015, he will probably go to another big club like Real Madrid or Manchester United. Dortmund will probably not be able to hold on to him.”

Now, reports in both Spain and Germany suggest Los Blancos are set to sign Reus next summer, with a deal agreed in principle. The player is represented by Volker Struth, the man who helped engineer Toni Kroos’ move to the Santiago Bernabeu this year.

Reports says with Ronaldo set to hit the 30 years of age mark in February and doubts over Jese Rodriguez’ long-term fitness, Florentino Perez wants to add to his attacking options.

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Carlo Ancelotti has said he was pleased with his side’s attitude and performance after Real Madrid saw off Villarreal 2-0 at El Madrigal on Saturday.

Los Blancos ensured a third straight league win thanks to goals from Luka Modric and Cristiano Ronaldo – who now have eight goals in his last three league games. The team also kept their first clean sheet of the season after coming in for some criticism for having a leaky defence.

Speaking to reporters after the game, Italian manager Ancelotti said he was pleased not only with the result but with how how the players worked to ensure they returned to the Spanish capital with all three points.

“We had a very good attitude. We played a good match against an opposition that made it very difficult for us. We worked hard when he had to work hard and played when we had to play. We deserved to win. Playing a 4-3-3 formation is risky sometimes, but it’s a risk we know and it’s controlled,” he stated.

He also had words of praise for French striker Karim Benzema, who has come in for criticism for his lack of goal in the early part of the season. “Benzema should be congratulated for his performance, which was very good. Sometimes passing is better than scoring. He was key in the second goal,” he said.

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Any attempt by FA Cup holders Arsenal to sign Real Madrid midfielder Isco in the January transfer window will be met with frustration, it has been claimed.

The Gunners are one of a number of clubs said to be interested in the playmaker, who has seen his progression stall since his big money move to the Santiago Bernabeu last summer.

The 22-year-old, who joined from Malaga in a 30-million-euro deal, has scored 11 times in 53 matches for the club but has been frustrated at the lack of regular first team football and overlooked for key matches.

A host of Premier League sides are rumoured to be interested in him. Reports in the UK and Spain suggest Arsenal are the most keen to sign him, but Liverpool and Manchester City are also monitoring his situation in the Spanish capital.

But the papers say Carlo Ancelott and the Los Blancos directors will not agree to any sale of Isco in the winter window as it would leave the squad light and weaken their options in the latter part of the season.

Should his situation not improve, the player could look to seek a move elsewhere at the end of the campaign.

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