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Bayern Munich midfielder Toni Kroos has urged his club’s directors to open negotiations with Real Madrid about a move to the Santiago Bernabeu, according to reports.

Kroos has been the subject of much speculation as his contract at the German champions expires next year, and he has so far failed to agree a new deal at the Allianz Arena. He is keen to be put among the top earners at the club alongside the likes of Bastian Schweinsteiger and Franck Ribery, and will look elsewhere if he isn’t paid what he feels he deserves.

He had been linked with a switch to Manchester United, and former Red Devils boss David Moyes was keen to sign him. Despite the fact that Kroos’ former manager at Bayern, Louis Van Gaal, will take over the hotseat at Old Trafford after the World Cup, the midfielder would prefer a move to Madrid.

Spanish paper El Confidencial claims Kroos and his representatives have met officials from the club at least three times to discuss personal terms.

Los Blancos manager Carlo Ancelotti is thought to be keen on strengthening his midfield options, having played Angel di Maria in a more unfamiliar central role in the past season. As well as Toni Kroos, another option he is looking at is PSG’s Marco Verratti.

 

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Former Real Madrid defender Michel Salgado has said Spain will find it difficult to retain the World Cup trophy they won four years ago, and has tipped hosts Brazil to lift the cup.

Spain go into the tournament as one of the heavyweights, having dominated world football for the last six years. They have won the last three tournaments they play taken part in, two European Championships, with a World Cup sandwiched between them.

But speaking at a five-a-side event in Dubai, right-back Salgado said the core of the team has played so much football over the past few years that they will eventually run out of steam.

Real Madrid goalkeeper and Spain’s number one Iker Casillas has lost his place at club level, Fernando Torres looks a shadow of his former self, and Xavi Hernandez has been showing signs of wear and tear this season.

“The major problems are the key players are getting older and the amount of games they have played in the last six or seven years. What they have done is unbelievable; historical for our country. It’s a generation that we will always remember and these players need a big farewell from football,” Salgado said.

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The main talking point in the papers today in Spain as they continue their preparations for the World Cup by taking on El Salvador.

But there plenty of coverage about Real Madrid, and of Sergio Ramos in particular. The central defender played a key role in helping Los Blancos secure the Copa de Rey and Champions League trophies.

He even chipped in with some important goals, including a double at the Allianz Arena in the semi-final against Bayern Munich, and the last gasp equaliser in the final against Atletico de Madrid to take the game into extra time.

And now, former Real midfielder Guti has said if Ramos has a good World Cup, he should be awarded the Ballon d’Or next year. In an interview with AS, he said he was pleased to see Ramos has such a successful campaign.

Speaking about the Champions League final, Guti said: “I was delighted for him. He deserved it, and this Decima will always be associated with him.” He then went on to add that he will be in the hunt for the Ballon d’Or.

Continuing with Ramos in the spotlight, his Champions League final goal has been voted by readers of Marca as they best Real Madrid goal of the season. It took 35.6% of the vote ahead of Gareth Bale’s Copa del Rey final stunner, which took 33.5%.

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Granada believe they will be able to secure Real Madrid goalkeeper Jesus Fernandez in the summer transfer window.

Fernandez did not make a single first team appearance last season due to the strong competition of world class goalkeepers Diego Lopez and Iker Casillas ahead of him in the squad.

President of Granada, Quique Pina, reportedly wants the player to challenge for a first team spot with the side’s current goalkeeper Roberto Fernandez.

Due to his lack of game time at the Santiago Bernabeu Fernandez clearly feels it is the right time to move away from the club.

Udinese goalkeeper Orestis Karnezis spent this season on loan at Granada, but failed to make an impact breaking into the starting eleven, appearing only six times for the Andalucian club.

Genoa’s Eduardo is also a possible option for Granada, say Ideal.es. He was loaned to Braga last season, but is also rumoured to be a target for Levante this summer.

Were Fernandez to decide to leave Los Blancos this summer it would leave Real Madrid with a decision to either invest in a new third choice ‘keeper, or possibly promote either Fernando Pacheco, Ruben Yanez or Jacob Sanchez from Real Madrid Castilla.

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Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo has played down his country’s chances of winning the World Cup by claiming Portugal are in the toughest group.

The Ballon d’Or winner will captain his country in games against Germany, the USA and Ghana in Group G. And writing on his Sportlobster.com blog, Ronaldo said that while him and his teammates are ambitious and want to go far in Brazil, they have to take each game as it comes.

“We are not favourites, indeed, but as always, we will try and do the best possible. We know we have a difficult group stage. In fact, in my opinion, it is the strongest group of the World Cup, but let’s take one step at a time,” he stated.

The 51-goal Real Madrid star then went on to explain his pride at representing his country, and being aware that he is representing everyone in Portugal when he takes to the field.

“It’s an enormous pride to represent and to captain the Portuguese national side. Pride, satisfaction, pleasure and honour, but also a big responsibility.

“Above all, it’s the country that is at stake and we know that an entire nation — composed of 10 million Portuguese plus the ones living abroad — not only has their eyes set on us but also thrills with our successes and cries with the less good moments.

“We left for the World Cup in Brazil with hope, but also making sure that we keep our feet firmly on the ground,” he wrote.

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More transfer stories dominate the sports pages in Madrid this morning, and AS goes for a picture of Iker Casillas and a headline claiming Arsenal want to sign him.

The Gunners are on the lookout for goalkeeping reinforcements having seen Lukaz Fabianski and Emilio Viviano leave the club in recent weeks. Casillas’ future has been up in the air for quite some time at the Santiago Bernabeu, and while it somehow remains unthinkable that he would ever play in another shirt other than Los Blancos’, he will want the chance to play regularly again.

The World Cup winner has had to make do with a bit part role at the club for 18 months and the chance to join the FA Cup winners could present him with the opportunity to play week in week out again. This rumour will probably rumble on all summer though, so fans will need to be patient.

Marca goes with a Karim Benzema interview as its front page, with the Frenchaman saying Carlo Ancelotti brought calmness to the squad when he arrived last summer.

Elsewhere, Cristiano Ronaldo has been talking about Portugal’s chances at the World Cup. The 29-year-old insists he will be ready for the tournament and says the locals in Brazil will probably support Portugal as well because the two countries are like brothers.

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Real Madrid left-back Fabio Coentrao will sign a new deal that will tie him down at the Santiago Bernabeu until 2019.

The Portugal defender, who will represent his country at the World Cup this month, will receive a salary of around four million euros a year, according to Madrid sports paper Marca. It is in line with the average salary at the club.

Coentrao joined the club in 2011 from Benfica for 30 million euros and was handed a six-year deal. But he has put in some stellar performances, particularly in the latter stages of this season that have seen the club move to secure his services for even longer.

It is a turnaround from 12 months ago though when the defender looked set for the exit door. Last summer, he was linked with moves to former club Benfica, and Premier League side Chelsea, where he could have played under his former boss Jose Mourinho. And on deadline day in September, a loan move to Manchester United broke down, reportedly leaving Coentrao in tears.

But he has knuckled down and fought with Marcelo for the left-back slot under Carlo Ancelotti. His hard work was paid off as he picked up Champions League and Copa del Rey winners medals.

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Real Madrid technical staff are worried about Cristiano Ronaldo’s fitness prior to the start of the World Cup. The Portuguese Federation has admitted the player is suffering from tendonitis in his left knee and Los Blancos fear that playing in Brazil might cause him further problems in the future.

Ronaldo finished the season in a delicate state of form. Despite the fact he was not perfectly fit, he forced himself to play the Champions League final in Lisbon and win it against Atletico Madrid. After the match, he confessed he had physical problems but was not willing to miss such an important game.

Portugal national team doctors have also reported Ronaldo is suffering from muscle problems in the back of his thigh. Thus, it seems clear that he won’t arrive in a good state of form to Brazil.

Real Madrid directors are worried that Ronaldo will risk suffering a more serious injury if he plays in the World Cup. Portugal have a tough group, facing Germany, Ghana and the United States. Ronaldo will surely want to help his team, but playing before he’s perfectly cured is a risk Los Merengues don’t want him to take.

In the next few days Portugal doctors will decided whether Ronaldo will take part in the starting game of the group G against Germany on June 16 or not.

* Get all Real Madrid news in our Twitter account.

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Alvaro Morata

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has said striker Alvaro Morata is not moving to Italian champions Juventus.

The youngster has been tipped to move away from the Santiago Bernabeu with media reports in Spain suggesting this week that Juventus were close to securing the deal. It has long been rumoured though that the 21-year-old is attracting the interested of FA Cup winners Arsenal. Indeed, some reports last week suggested the deal to take Morata to the Emirate Stadium was as good as done.

Speaking to Cadena Ser, Perez said no deal was in place for Morata to move to Turin, and that he had not spoken to the Italian club’s representatives about any potential transfer.

He stated: “I am friends with the Juventus executives and president Andrea Agnelli. But I have not spoken to them regarding Morata and, honestly, the possibilities that he goes to play in Turin are zero.”

Despite no deal being in place at the moment, Perez admitted he will talk to Morata to find out the best option for him and the club. The Spain under-21 forward is believed to be keen on a switch away from the Champions League winners in order to get more regular first team football.

“I will meet the player and we will try to find the best solution for him and for the club,” Perez added.

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Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has hailed the impact Gareth Bale, Sergio Ramos and Gareth Bale have had in his first season in charge at the Santiago Bernabeu, saying each of them brings different qualities to the team that have made it so successful this season.

Ancelotti guided his side to success in the Copa del Rey in April before finally ending the 12-year wait for the club’s 10th Champions League two weeks ago when they defeated city rivals Atletico de Madrid in the final in Lisbon.

In an interview with Real Madrid TV, the Italian hailed his side on the whole for their fighting spirit and the way they played this season, but mentioned three players in particular.

He said Bale’s first term at the Santiago Bernabeu was sensational given that he had no pre-season under his belt when his signed back in September.  “Some players who come from England have problems; not Bale. He didn’t start well because he was not here for the pre-season, but then he did well. He worked well and scored two goals in the finals. I don’t know what will happen when he does a complete pre-season… It was like he had a motorbike for his goal against Barcelona. His physique and quality are extraordinary. He tries things at a pace that nobody else can,” he said.

Switching his attention to Ramos, he described him as the best defender in the world.  Ancelotti stated: “He has everything Maldini had: personality, technical quality, the ability to lead on and off the pitch. I’ve never compared anyone to Maldini. At the moment Sergio is the best defender in the world.”

And about Ronaldo, the Italian boss said when the 29-year-old starts, Real Madrid are essentially 1-0 before a ball is kicked.

“Cristiano’s statistic is  not complicated: one goal per match. If Cristiano plays the match starts at 1-0. He really surprised me with his dedication, professionalism and leadership qualities. He is not just a player who scores important goals. He was also fundamental in the relationship between Benzema, Bale and Cristiano. They had a fantastic season, scoring and setting up goals,” he commented.

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