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Brazilian international Luiz Gustavo has been linked with a move to Real Madrid. According to Spanish digital newspaper ElConfidencial.com, Los Blancos have contacted Wolfsburg and the German club has replied they will only let the player go for 25 million euros.

With Casemiro and Asier Illarramendi set to leave the Santiago Bernabeu on loan this summer, Los Blancos are looking for a defensive midfielder to fill that gap, especially since Sami Khedira has also been rumoured to be heading for a new destination. Luiz Gustavo could be a perfect fit for that role.

The 26-year-old is having a great performance with Brazil in the World Cup, and many clubs have shown an interest in signing him.

Luiz Gustavo is a solid midfielder with great capacity to destroy the rival’s attacks and great physical display. His good technique allows him to play an important role in building the game.

The Brazilian moved to Wolfsburg last summer from Bayern Munich, signing a five-year contract. He had played 100 games and scored six goals for the Munich side, but the arrival of Pep Guardiola left him without a spot in the starting eleven.

With Wolfsburg, he’s made 30 appearances this season, scoring four goals and earning a place among Brazil’s starters in the World Cup.

* Get all the latest Real Madrid news on our Twitter account.

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With no World Cup action until the Tuesday, there is a lot of transfer talk once again in the papers this morning.

And we’ll start with the ongoing saga of Toni Kroos’ transfer – which dominates the headlines in both Marca and AS.

The Germany midfielder, currently playing for his country in the World Cup in Brazil, was asked by journalists about his future after the tournament finishes. And he said he has already made a decision, but will not reveal it until the World Cup is over.

Meanwhile, former Germany captain Luther Matthaus has congratulated Real Madrid for signing the 24-year-old. According to Matthaus, Kroos is the complete midfielder, and the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale will enjoy feeding off his passes.

Elsewhere, there is still talk of Los Blancos preparing an offer for Monaco’s playmaker James Rodriguez, but they would have to sell first. And the most likely to leave is Angel di Maria. Manchester United are the latest club linked with him, and are believed to be preparing an offer in the region of 60 million euros.

And finally, Florentino Perez paid another visit to Alfredo di Stefano in hospital yesterday. The former striker remains in a critical but stable condition after suffering a heart attack on Saturday.

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Real Madrid pair Sami Khedira and Marcelo will meet each other in the World Cup semi-final on Tuesday night as Germany take on host nation Brazil.

The Germans qualified for the last four by beating France on Friday evening, meaning they have reached at least the seim-final stage of the last five consecutive World Cup and European Championships they have played in.

Marcelo took his place in the line up for Brazil as they overcame Colombia 2-1 in a tough match. Star man Neymar will be missing for the rest of the tournament have broken a bone in his back, while captain Thiago Silva will sit out the match against the Germans through suspension.

Tuesday’s semi-final will be a second appearance for Khedira at this stage, as he was also part of the side that lost to Spain in the final four in South Africa in 2010. His appearance against France on Friday was his 50th game for Germany. He has found the net on four occasions.

Marcelo will be playing his first World Cup semi-final as the host nation look to win the tournament they last won 12 years ago in Japan and South Korea. The left-back is one of the first names on Luiz Felipe Scolari’s team sheet, having played all five matches for Brazil.

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Real Madrid winger Angel di Maria is likely to miss the rest of the World Cup because of a thigh injury.

The 26-year-old limped off after just 33 minutes in Argentina’s 1-0 over Belgium and will have further tests on Sunday to explore the extent of the injury. Former Los Blancos froward Gonzalo Higuain scored the only goal of the game as the South American side qualified for the final four for the first time in 24 years.

Although not talking about how serious the injury was, Argentina boss Alejandro Sabella told journalists after the match that di Maria would be a doubt for the semi-final clash against Holland on Wednesday evening. But media reports in Argentina suggested he will miss the rest of the tournament.

“I hope that it won’t be too (bad) in the case of Angel because Angel is vital to us,” he said.

Di Maria had played a part in the lead up to the goal, and had also netted the winner against Switzerland in the last 16 clash earlier this week. During the game with Belgium, he went off holding his right thigh after trying to play through the pain for a few minutes.

Higuain also told journalists at the end of the game that di Maria would be a big loss for Argentina, who are already without Sergio Aguero.

“He’s a key player in this project,” Higuain stated. “I’m really sorry. But we hope that he will be ready as soon as possible because we know what he does for the team.”

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Real Madrid forward Karim Benzema has said he is already looking forward to the next World Cup in Russia and wants to still be part of the France squad then.

Les Blues lost 1-0 to Germany in the quarter-finals in Brazil yesterday, and after some exciting displays until then, the performance against Joachim Low’s side was insipid and uninspiring.

But speaking to the press afterward, Benzema said a number of factors affected the way France played, particularly the heat. And he questioned why the footballing authorities would make the players play at 1pm local time, when the temperature was 28 degrees at kick-off.

However, despite the loss, the 26-year-old said he was happy with how Les Bleus had performed overall. They managed 10 goals along the way and won three of their matches – a marked improvement from 2010 when they were sent packing in the first round and even went on strike after most of the squad fell out with former boss Raymond Domenech.

Benzema stated: “I’m happy we made it this far. I’m young enough to play in another World Cup.”

The former Lyon man, who helped Los Blancos to success in the Copa del Rey and Champions League last season, will now take a break before turning his attention to the new campaign at the Santiago Bernabeu.

 

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We found out the other semi-final fixture last night as Argentina saw off Belgium thanks to a Gonzalo Higuain goal, before Holland defeated plucky Costa Rica 4-3 on penalties after a goalless draw. Angel di Maria  started for Argentina but was taken off just after the half hour mark with a thigh problem that looks likely to keep him out of the tournament.

Looking at Real Madrid news, the story dominating the headlines is that of Alfredo di Stefano. The 88-year-old suffered cardic arrest yesterday afternoon and was taken to hospital where he remains in a serious but stable condition according to doctors.

Fans have been using social media to wish him and his family well, via the Twitter hashtag #FuerzaDonAlfredo, while players and club officials have sent their messages of support. Florentino Perez visited di Stefano in hospital, and said in a brief statement to journalists outside that “the whole of the Real Madrid family wishes di Stefano a speedy recovery”.

Ex-Los Blancos forward Higuain sent a message of support and said di Stefano was always close to him at Real Madrid from the moment his signed at the age of 18.

In other news, manager Carlo Ancelotti is getting married in Canada this weekend. He will tie the knot with Mariann Auger, who is from Canada, before having a few days break in Italy ahead of pre-season training which starts on July 14.

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paul collins with alfredo di stefano

Real Madrid legend Alfredo di Stefano is in a critical condition in hospital after suffering a cardiac arrest.

The former Los Blancos forward, who celebrated his 88th birthday yesterday, was taken ill after having lunch at a restaurant in the Spanish capital and was transferred to Gregorio Marañon hospital.

Medics from Samur were able to revatalise di Stefano after 18 minutes of CPR, but given his age and health – he previously suffered a minor heart attack in 2005 – he is in a serious condition.

A spokesman for the emergency services confirmed di Stefano had been taken ill. Speaking to Spanish news agency EFE, the spokesman said: “A cardiac arrest was attended by Samur staff and they immediately transferred the patient to the Gregorio Maranon hospital.”

Regarded by many of one of the greatest players to ever play football, di Stefano, who represented both Argentina and Spain, was played a key role in helping Real Madrid win five consecutive European Cups in the 1950s. He also won eight La Liga titles in his time at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Di Stefano scored 216 league goals in just 282 matches for Los Blancos, and more than 300 in total between 1953 and 1964.

Everyone at realmadridnews.com has Alfredo and his family in our thoughts.

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Manchester United legend Paul Scholes has said Luis Suarez should be pushing for a move to Real Madrid and not rivals Barcelona.

The retired midfielder, now a coach at Old Trafford, was one of the most gifted players of his generation and has won all there is to win at club level in the game. And the ex-England man says Suarez joining the Catalan side would be a mistake.

Reports in Spain suggest a fee has been agreed between Barcelona and Liverpool for the Uruguayan striker, a one time target of Los Blancos. Luis Enrique’s side are set to offer the 26-year-old a five-year deal at the Nou Camp. Suarez is currently banned from all football for four months having been found guilty of biting an opponent for the third time in his career. If he completes his deal to Barcelona, he would not be able to train with his team mates until November.

Writing on his Paddy Power blog, Scholes said Suarez may find it difficult to fit in at the Nou Camp, and much would depend on how he gets on with Leo Messi. He added a switch to the Santiago Bernabeu would be a much better option.

“If Luis Suárez does sign for Barcelona from Liverpool, will Lionel Messi ‘accept’ him. Suárez is a centre-forward and he won’t want to play out wide. I can’t see Suárez and Messi linking well together. It seems to me, if Messi likes you, you’ll play. If he doesn’t, you’re wasting your time,” Scholes wrote.

He continued: “And, to be honest, I think Suárez is making a bit of a mistake going to Barcelona – he’d be better suited to Real Madrid.”

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Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale has insisted he can still improve as a player after a superb opening season at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The 24-year-old former Spurs player arrived in the Spanish capital in a 91-million-euro deal last summer, and despite a slow start to life at the club, ended the season with 22 goals to his name.

He ensured his place in the Real Madrid history books by scored the winning goal in the Copa del Rey final against Barcelona and netting the crucial second goal as Los Blancos defeated city rivals Atletico de Madrid in the Champions League in Lisbon – the 10th time they have won Europe’s top club trophy.

Sitting down to talk to uefa.com, Bale looked back on his career from when he started as a left-back at Southampton. And he said he had changed his game over time, but there is still more to come.

“[I’m very] different. I think physically, mainly. When I first started playing [at Southampton] I was a little scrawny kid! I have grown and become more powerful and stronger. I’m just keeping working now, on every part of my game. Hopefully I can still keep improving in the future,” he stated.

He also added that he was looking forward to the Super Copa taking place in Cardiff, as football is constantly growing in the largely rugby loving city. “Wales is a big rugby nation. Cardiff is a city on the rise and hopefully that can continue,” Bale said.

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The first quarter-finals of the World Cup took place with Germany defeating France and Brazil narrowly beating Colombia to set up a mouthwatering semi-final clash next week. It means Karim Benzema and Raphael Varane are now on their way home after a good tournament for both. But Marcelo and Sami Khedira will go head-to-head.

And sticking with the German midfielder, AS says Italian side Fiorentina have joined the race for the 26-year-old. The former Stuttgart man is looking increasingly likely to leave the Santiago Bernabeu this summer, particularly if Los Blancos sign his team mate in the German side, Toni Kroos.

FA Cup winners Arsenal are the favourites for his signature and are thought to have made an offer close to 30 million euros for Khedira, but Fiorentina have asked to be kept informed of developments and are expected to come up with an offer shortly themselves.

Elsewehere, Marca and AS both ran articles on Alfredo di Stefano honouring his birthday yesterday. The Real Madrid legend turned 88. The online editions of both papers have video compilations of his best goals in a Madrid shirt.

And finally, Zinedine Zidane will make he ‘debut’ as Real Madrid Castillas boss on July 14. The second string team, which was relegated from Segunda B last season, will return to work ahead of the new campaign then.

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