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Carlo Ancelotti to Real Madrid

Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has said his players need to move past the disappointment of not winning La Liga and prepare well for the Champions League final.

Los Blancos lost 2-0 to Celta Vigo at the weekend, ending any hopes they had of lifting the title. This weekend´s final game of the season is a dead rubber for the team, and the focus now is wholly on the final on May 24 against Atletico de Madrid.

Since the semi-final win over Bayern Munich, Real have gone on a horrendous run of form, dropping points against Valencia, Valladolid and Celta Vigo.

But Ancelotti told reporters now is not the time to look back and dissect where the league campaign went wrong, but look forward and prepare well for the final.

“I don’t think we threw the league away. It is true though that we haven’t played well in the last three games. After the semi-finals our intensity dropped and we’ve been made to pay dearly. Now is not the time to look at what we have failed to do well. We have to look forwards, recoup our energy and our players in order to prepare well for the final,” he said.

When asked for his thoughts on the league showdown between Barcelona and Atletico at the Nou Camp on Saturday evening, the Italian stated: “I don’t care who it is. I think it will be a high-pressure game. I’m not interested either way. At the moment we have a different issue and that is to prepare well for the Champions League final. We have time and we’ll be well prepared.”

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Real Madrid playmaker Isco has admitted the side let their standards drop in the closing weeks of the season and they need to up their game if they are to be successful in the Champions League.

The 22-year-old, a surprise omission from Spain’s World Cup squad, told journalists that Los Blancos have no one else to blame other than themselves for letting the chances of winning the league slip.

Draws against Valencia and Valladolid and the 2-0 defeat to Celta Vigo proved fatal to their hopes, and they now have their focus on the meeting with Atletico de Madrid in Lisbon on May 24.

The former Malaga man said: We’ve let our intensity drop in the last few matches; it’s not like Madrid, which is used to fighting to the end. We haven’t achieved what we wanted. Looking at how everyone else has slipped up we would have had a chance. Now it’s time to hold our heads up.”

“We’ve lost the Liga through our own mistakes. All we can do now is learn from it and turn our minds towards the last Liga match, which will serve as preparation for the Champions League final”.

“We’re eager to turn around the pattern of the last three matchdays. If we win the Champions League it will be a spectacular season; if not, it will be mediocre. The starting eleven is the manager’s decision. There are two weeks left and whoever earns their place in training will play.”

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Spanish national team manager Vicente del Bosque has included four Real Madrid players in the preliminary list for Brazil’s 2014 World Cup.

Iker Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Daniel Carvajal and Xabi Alonso have made it into the first selection, and all of them except Carvajal have their ticket for Brazil secured.

Del Bosque will have to reject seven players before May 25th, when the final 23-man list has to be sent over to the FIFA.

The former Real Madrid manager has already chosen his three goalkeepers for the event: Casillas, Pepe Reina and David de Gea. All of them will be in the final list, leaving Diego Lopez out despite his good performances in La Liga this season.

Ramos and Alonso are also two key players for Del Bosque, and they already know they will be in Brazil. Meanwhile, Carvajal will have to fight for the right-back role with Chelsea’s Cesar Azpilicueta and Atletico’s Juanfran Torres. Only two of them will make it in the final squad.

Del Bosque has finally decided to leave Alvaro Arbeloa out, despite having admitted a few weeks ago that the Spartan would travel to Brazil if he was healthy. Real Madrid home-grown defender has already recovered from his injury, but Carvajal’s great state of shape has penalized him.

The Spanish manager has also left Isco out, given the high competency in his position. Former Real Madrid defender Raul Albiol and Los Merengues home-grown players Juan Mata and Alvaro Negredo have also been included among the 30 preselected men.

Here is the complete list: Iker Casillas, Pepe Reina, David de Gea, Cesar Azpilicueta, Gerard Pique, Sergio Ramos, Jordi Alba, Alberto Moreno, Javi Martinez, Raul Albiol, Juanfran Torres, Daniel Carvajal, Sergio Busquets, Xabi Alonso, Koke Resurreccion, Ander Iturraspe, Xavi Hernandez, Thiago Alcantara, Pedro, Jesus Navas, David Silva, Cesc Fabregas, Juan Mata, Santi Cazorla, Andres Iniesta, Diego Costa, David Villa, Fernando Torres, Alvaro Negredo and Fernando Llorente.

* Follow Alejandro Gonzalez on Twitter @alejandrognieto

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Preparations for the 2014 UEFA Champions League final in Lisbon have begun, with Dutchman Bjorn Kuipers named as the match official for the European showpiece finale.

The final will be the first time in tournament history that both teams come from the same city, but for those Real fans superstitious about the final against Atletico, the fact that Kuipers has never officiated a Real win in Europe will be of concern.

The 41-year-old officiated two Real games in the past since becoming a UEFA affiliated referee in 2006, both in the 12-13 Champions League, and Real drew 1-1 with CSKA Moscow and the 4-1 defeat to Borussia Dortmund in the first leg semi final.

Kuipers has never taken charge of a Atletico game, and his only game in the knockout stage of this season was Manchester United’s 3-0 win over Olympiakos.

However, the Dutchman has taken charge of European finals before, as he was in the middle for Chelsea’s last gasp 2-1 win over Benfica in the 2013 Europa League final last season.

And he also took charge of last year’s Confederations Cup final as Brazil won 3-0 against Spain in the warm up to this years World Cup Finals this June which take place in the South American country.

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Despite constant rumours during the season that Fabio Coentrao would leave Real Madrid in summer, Spanish digital newspaper ElConfidencial.com has revealed that the Portuguese is negotiating a contract extension with the club’s directors.

Florentino Perez has reportedly offered the defender a salary worth four million euros a year, and a extension of his contract until June 2018.

Coentrao has had a brilliant performance so far in 2014, especially in the Champions League. Marcelo’s injury left him as the starting left-back, and he has played so well that Carlo Ancelotti has decided to line him up in crucial games even when the Brazilian has been fit to play.

The 26-year-old was key in Real Madrid’s Copa del Rey success and Ancelotti has personally asked the board members to make sure he will stay at the club next season.

Coentrao has been willing to leave since last summer, when he was close to signing for Manchester United in the last day of the summer transfer window. He felt that the fans and the club didn’t value him as much as he wanted, and he was determined to leave this year.

However, things have changed in the last few months. Coentrao has all the support from Ancelotti, and the fans have also welcomed his continuation. Having two great friends in the squad such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Pepe has also been a crucial factor for the Portuguese to agree a contract extension.

Meanwhile, Marcelo’s situation is far different from Coentrao’s. The Brazilian has had one of his worst seasons since he arrived to Real Madrid and some Spanish media have suggested Los Blancos might be open to taking offers into consideration. However, most likely scenario is both left-backs staying at the Santiago Bernabeu next season.

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We are five days away from the end of the La Liga season and the Madrid press is focused on the winner takes all clash at the Nou Camp between Barcelona and Atletico de Madrid.

But there is no shortage of news about Real Madrid though, and we’ll start this morning with Marca saying Cristiano Ronaldo will play against Espanyol at the weekend despite some concerns over his fitness. While many will want him to be held back for the final of the Champions League a week later, the Portuguese is eager to play to secure the Golden Boot.

The 29-year-old has scored more than 50 goals for Real Madrid again this season, 31 of which have come in the league so far. He is tied with Liverpool striker Luis Suarez in the race for the Golden Boot – Europe’s top goalscorer and needs just one more to be the outright winner. Leo Messi is on 28 and Diego Costa 27 going into the final round of matches.

Elsewhere, Karim Benzema is set to play the Champions League final having been assessed by the club’s medical staff. They found no serious issue in his knee and the Frenchman will resume training with the first team squad in preparation for the showdown with city rivals Atletico on May 24.

Finally, in a poll held by AS, Casemiro is the preferred option to replace the suspended Xabi Alonso for the final. 53% of the newspaper’s readers said they wanted the Brazilian to start, with 32% opting for Sami Khedira, and just 15% saying Asier Illarramendi should get the nod.

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Real Madrid’s assistant manager Zinedine Zidane could be set to move to either Juventus or Girondins Bordeaux, according to reports.

The Frenchman has decided to leave the Santiago Bernabeu in order to start a managerial career and many clubs have shown an interest in hiring him.

Italian newspaper TuttoSport has claimed Juventus directors have made Zidane their priority for the coach job in case Antonio Conte leaves Turin.

After having won the Scudetto for third consecutive year, the Bianconeri are planning a new project aiming to step up in the Champions League. TuttoSport has stated Andrea Agnelli sees in the Frenchman the perfect man to lead that project.

Zidane is an idol for Juventus fans, helping the team win the Seria A title twice and the Supercoppa de Italia. Thus, the crowd would be delighted to have him back, while the directors hope their signing would facilitate the arrival of current Real Madrid players such as Alvaro Morata and Angel di Maria.

Meanwhile, French sports daily L’Equipe has suggested Zidane will sign for Girondins Bordeaux, where he spent four years as a player. This newspaper claims the Ligue 1 side has started negotiating with Zizou, although no agreement has been reached.

* Follow Alejandro Gonzalez on Twitter @alejandrognieto

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Daniel Carvajal

Daniel Carvajal believes the youth set up at Real Madrid is the best in the world.

The right-back grew up in the youth teams at the club before moving to German outfit Bayer Leverkussen to gain first team experience and help his development as a player.

But the youngster made the move back to the Santiago Bernabeu last summer and has played a key role in the team this year, particularly in the last two months covering for the injured Alvaro Arbeloa.

Los Blancos have long been associated with producing top quality youth player who eventually make the grade at the club – Raul being the most famous of them. Around the major leagues today there are many players who have passed through the youth academy at some point, including the likes of Juan Mata at Manchester United and Roberto Soldado at Tottenham Hotspur.

The current Los Blancos squad also includes youth academy graduates Jese Rodriguez and Alvaro Morata.

Inside Spanish Football has quotes from the defender hailing the youth system at the nine-time European Cup winners.

“The Real Madrid youth academy is the best in the world. They teach you the core fundamentals of the game when you are young, then they build as you grow into a professional player,” he said.

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Inter Milan announced last week that their captain Javier Zanetti, who has played for the Neroazzurri since 1995, will hang up his boots this summer to become a director for the club. However, the Argentinian’s history could have been very different than we know.

Before Zanetti moved to Milan, Real Madrid were interested in bringing him to the Santiago Bernabeu. The full-back had been one of the most outstanding players at Banfield, and in fact he had already made his debut with Argentina’s national team. It was in 1994, in a match against Chile.

In the summer of 1995, Los Blancos were eager to sign a right-back and they decided to make an offer for the young Argentinian player. However, Banfield ask them for almost six million euros. Madrid didn’t have the same economic strength back then and, concerned about the fact that Zanetti’s great form could be just something temporary, they decided to break off the negotiations. Thus, they finally signed Quique Sanchez Flores, whose transfer was quite cheaper.

Nevertheless, Zanetti had another chance to move to Europe. Inter were also eying him and took the risk of paying the six million euros Banfield requested. The Italians discovered the Argentinian by happenstance. They were eying Sebastian Rambert in a game between Banfield and Independiente Avellaneda and ended up delighted with Zanetti.

In fact, the first two signings of Massimo Moratti as Inter’s president were Rambert and Zanetti. Both were unveiled on the same day. Rambert was seen as the star, while Zanetti was expected to have a minor role. Nevertheless, Moratti confessed in an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport that he was attacked for the full-back’s signing: “Everybody told me I had hired an unknown player that would only last a few months.”

Real Madrid realized their mistake a few years after, and they tried to sign him in 2001. However, at that time the love between Inter and Zanetti was already unbreakable. So strong that still today their relationship continues.

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Florentino Perez, Real Madrid president

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has said the team will fight to the death to win the Champions League final last this month.

Los Blancos take on city rivals Atletico de Madrid in Lisbon on May 24 having seen off holders Bayern Munich along the way. A win for Carlo Ancelotti’s men would end the 12-year wait for the club’s 10th European Cup – the coveted Decima that previous teams have come close to but fallen short of winning.

Speaking to Spanish television station Sexta while watching Real fan Rafa Nadal at the Madrid Masters, Perez said the players would give it their all to win the trophy, especially as La Liga appears to be out of reach. The midweek draw with Valladolid looks to have been fatal to Madrid’s hopes and it La Liga could come down to the match between Barcelona and Atletico at the Nou Camp next weekend.

“We will fight until the death to win La Decima,” Perez stated. “We will sweat every single drop, as Rafa Nadal does in his matches, in order to be able to win the Champions League.

“For Madridistas the Champions League is a competition in which we feel very at home. We owe our fans this and we will do everything we can in order to win it.”

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