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Former Spain and Real Madrid boss Jose Antonio Camacho has said the club has not seen the best of Gareth Bale yet.

Despite forming a deadly understanding with Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema in the attacking trio, Camacho says Bale can improve even further next season before he starts living up to his price tag.

The 24-year-old Welshman signed for Los Blancos in a 91-million-deal last summer from Tottenham Hotspur. Despite initially struggling with injury, has scored 14 goals and provided 12 assists.

Camacho to AS that both Bale and Barcelona forward Neymar could do better.

“They have yet to give their best,” he stated, before adding “Neymar has more on him, with the World Cup in Brazil coming up, where he’ll have a starring role. Bale isn’t going to the World Cup and so won’t have that. But if you cost what he cost, and you play in Madrid, you have to rise to the price tag.”

With the Clasico a little over a week away, Camacho also recalled his experiences of the matches he took part in between the two great rivals.

He commented: “I’ll always have a special memory of the first Clasico I played in, against Johan Cruyff’s Barcelona when it looked like they were going to win it all.

“They came to the Santiago Bernabeu and it was a festival of football. The following year looked like being the same and there was I, a lad of 18, against Cruyff.

“I was very motivated for the game and I think I won an award. We won the League Cup too. I think that was when Spanish football got stronger and more important.”

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Stoke City goalkeeper Asmir Begovic has rubbished rumours of Real Madrid having contacted him to negotiate a possible move to the Santiago Bernabeu.

The Bosnia international confessed to be “very proud of hearing these kind of things, but they are just rumours, there’s nothing official and I haven’t spoken to anyone from the Madrid club.”

The 26-year-old goalie told Spanish press agency EFE “it’s something extraordinary and brilliant when then link you with such a great club, one of the biggest in the world.”

Begovic insisted every player dreams of playing in one of the big clubs. “However I’m very happy at Stoke City, I have an excellent status here and I’m just thinking about my club right now. If there’s something more than rumours in the future, I might be able to give a more concrete answer,” he said.

The Daily Telegraph had reported that Carlo Ancelotti had seen the Bosnian as the man to replace Diego Lopez, who will very likely leave the club next summer. Celtic goalkeeper Fraser Forster had also been linked with the job. Yet, both rumours seem to have very little of truth.

Begovic is having a solid season at Stoke, where he’s had 25 appearances and he has even scored an epic goal against Southampton. He will play the World Cup with Bosnia national team, where they will face Argentina, Nigeria and Iran in the group stage.

* Follow Alejandro Gonzalez on Twitter at @alejandrognieto

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Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has praised his assistant Zinedine Zidane for the part he has played in helping Karim Benzema improve as a player.

The French striker has scored 12 goals in 14 games since the start of 2014, and is enjoying his most productive season in a Los Blancos shirt since his arrival from Lyon in 2009.

And Ancelotti told RMC Sport that the upturn in form has been a result of working closely with Zidane, a World Cup winner with France in 1998, and one of Benzema’s idols.

The Italian said: “I think Zidane’s done fantastic work, especially with Karim. He’s communicated a lot with the players and implemented a specific job with all attackers. His work is very important. I am very pleased with Zidane. He has a lot of enthusiasm and a lot of knowledge. He understands what is happening on the pitch during a match. I asked him several times if he wanted to play but he told me no! He can still play without problem!”

The former PSG, Chelsea and AC Milan boss went on to add that he feels it is important to have a right-hand man who is familiar with the club and knows what it means to wear the shirt.

“This is important when you get into a club, to be able to rely on someone who knows the club very well, as I had done with Claude Makelele at PSG,” Ancelotti stated.

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Manchester United and Manchester City are preparing to do battle for the signature of Real Madrid defender Nacho Fernandez as they look to strengthen their respective defences in the summer.

According to reports in the UK press, the 24-year-old is considering a move away from the Santiago Bernabeu in search of regular first team football, and would consider a move to the north west of England.

United manager David Moyes faces a major overhaul of his squad this summer, with a particular focus on the defence. Club captain Nemanja Vidic will leave the club at the end of the season and sign for Inter Milan on a free transfer. Rio Ferdinand and Patrice Evra may also be moved on from Old Trafford.

At cross city rivals, Manuel Pellegrini will be looking to bolster his back line after some uncertain performances this season from Martin Demichelis in particular.

Fernandez has spent 10 years with Los Blancos having worked his way up through the youth teams. He made his first team debut in 2011, and has represented Spain at international level. But he has found opportunities at the club hard to come by, making just seven appearances for the side under Carlo Ancelotti this season.

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It’s been a quiet week for Real Madrid, and the focus is slowly shifting to the next league fixture this weekend against Malaga – the last one before el Clasico the following week.

But there is plenty of news in the Madrid press still, and we start with an uplifting story in Marca, in which the mother of a baby suffering from cortical dysplasia calls Cristiano Ronaldo an ‘angel’ after he offered to pay for her son’s operation.

Cristina Cruz told the paper of her son Erik’s condition and how the family had fought to raise funds for the procedure. She said when Ronaldo initially found out about the case, he donated his shirt and boots to be auctioned but then later offered to pay for the treatment. Erik’s mother said: “For me Cristiano is an angel.”

Elsewhere, Diego Lopez has been talking about Real’s season to date and what is still to come in the final months. He told an audience yesterday that he expects the three-way battle for La Liga to go to the wire.

“We are seeing a very strong Atletico emerge this season, and no matter what anyone says, Barcelona will be in there until the end too. We are ready to work hard and fight for each other to achieve our goals,” he said.

Finally, the transfer of Alvaro Morata to Arsenal does to seem as close as was made out last month. AS and Marca both say the latest party interested in signing the young forward is Manchester United.

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Trying to sign Zlatan Ibrahimovic or Marco Varratti from PSG would be a waste of time, according to Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti.

Before his move to the Santiago Bernabeu last summer, the Italian secured a first title in 19 years for the French capital club, and pair were vital cogs in the PSG machine. It was indeed Ancelotti who signed the pair at the Parc des Princes – something that has lead to many speculating about a potential link-up again in Madrid.

Los Blancos are thought to be on the lookout for a striker to compete with Karim Benzema, having got rid of Gonzalo Higuain in August. Many names have been banded about, and one that keeps cropping up is that of the big Swedish striker. Real have also been linked with a move for Verratti in the past.

But in an interview with Le 10 Sport, Ancelotti said Los Blancos would be wasting their time and effort if they attempted to sign the pair.

“No, not at all. There are players that you cannot dislodge because they are very important to their team,” he said when asked about a potential summer bid.

He continued: “Ibrahimovic and Verratti are very important for PSG. We will not waste time trying to make impossible recruits.”

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Real Madrid centre-back Pepe has confessed he and his mother are deeply hurt every time somebody calls him “murderer” in a football stadium.

In an interview with Spanish radio station Onda Cero, the Portuguese defender said “it’s not easy for a mother to hear someone calling his son a murderer. I didn’t commit any crime. I don’t know what happened to me that day at Getafe, I’m still trying to understand it, but I can’t explain it.”

The 31-year-old confessed he’s sad that people keep of judging him for that incident with Getafe’s Javier Casquero back in 2009.

“I try to do the best for my club and for me, but you have to differentiate between what happens on the field and outside of it. Everyone tries to do what’s best for their team when they’re on the field,” he told radio show Al Primer Toque.

Pepe also spoke about his teammate Cristiano Ronaldo: “Many people think he’s cocky and disagreeable, but he’s a normal guy, a good friend for his friends. He makes a lot of presents to the kit men, the physiotherapists… He helps a lot of people.”

The Portuguese explained Ronaldo has become a mentor for youngster Jese Rodriguez this season. “Cristiano speaks a lot with him, he knows he’s like a mirror for the boy. Jese always looks at him, makes him a lot of questions and Cristiano is always worried to teach him so he can become a great player,” Pepe concluded.

* Follow Alejandro Gonzalez on Twitter at @alejandrognieto

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Carlo Ancelotti has already starting planning Real Madrid’s squad for next season, according to Spanish newspaper Sport. The Barcelona-based daily claims the Italian has already decided they will need to reinforce three positions.

According to these reports, Ancelotti would be looking for a left-back, a creative midfielder and a striker.

The first of them would only be necessary in case Fabio Coentrao left the Santiago Bernabeu next summer, a move that is very likely to happen. Ancelotti has reportedly picked his two favourite replacements: Valencia’s Juan Bernat and Sevilla’s Alberto Moreno. The former’s buy-out clause is 30 million euros, while the latter’s is 20 million. Moreno has also been linked with a move to Atletico Madrid.

For the midfield, the club’s favourite is Juventus’ Paul Pogba, who has been personally recommended by Zinedine Zidane. However, the Italians might not be willing to let his star leave. Ilkay Gundogan was also an option a few months ago, but his back injury has ruined his chances of moving to Madrid.

For the striker position, Ancelotti might be looking for a substitute rather than a world-class star. With Alvaro Morata very possibly leaving on loan next summer, Madrid’s boss would seek for a low-profile striker to become Karim Benzema’s replacement. Thus, Luis Suarez, Sergio Aguero and Radamel Falcao would not join Real Madrid as it had been rumoured. Sport claims Ancelotti has put his eyes on Bayern Munich’s Mario Mandzukic, who will not have many chances of playing next season with the arrival of Robert Lewandowski.

* Follow Alejandro Gonzalez on Twitter at @alejandrognieto

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Carlo Ancelotti has said that Karim Benzema has emerged to be a key component of the current Real Madrid side, and vital for the team as they look to lift three trophies this season.

Benzema has formed a devastating understanding with Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale this year, with the trio terrorising defences across La Liga and Europe. Los Blancos top the table by three points, while the face Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final next month. On the quest for European glory, they are all but into the quarter finals having beaten Schalke 6-1 in the first leg of their tie.

Speaking in an interview on RMC radio, Ancelotti said Benzema is vital to the way the team is set up.

“For us, Karim is not only important because he scores goals. He is important because he helps the team in possession,” said Ancelotti. He added: “I love the position and the characteristics of the player. He is not just a scorer, he is a complete player.”

The Italian boss also compared the 26-year-old to one of his former charges at PSG – Zlatan Ibrahimovic. And he said Benzema still has plenty of areas for improvement in his game – a scary thought for defenders.

Ancelotti said: “He is not very different from Zlatan, who is also a team player. The combination of Bale-Ronaldo-Benzema is complementary. I think we can still improve him, especially in his character, and show more personality. He is a very quiet and shy boy. This is where he can improve.”

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Real Madrid have a rare midweek off as they are not due to play the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie with Schalke until next week.

The Madrid press is largely focused on Atletico de Madrid’s 4-1 win over AC Milan at the Vicente Calderon that ensured their progress to the last eight of the competition. There is plenty of material and news on Real Madrid however.

And in Marca, there are quotes from Pepe discussing his fall out with former Real boss Jose Mourinho. The pair fell out spectacularly after the manager decided to drop Iker Casillas and was questioned by Pepe over the move. Mourinho, never one to take criticism well, then publicly criticised the Portugal defender.

Speaking to Onda Cero, Pepe stated: “I didn’t do it (criticise Mourinho) just because it was Iker, but because it was a colleague and friend of mine and for everything he has done for this club. ”

And responding to the now Chelsea manager’s recent comments about Real Madrid, Pepe retorted: “He must be the only one to get up in the morning and not look at himself in the mirror.”

Elsewhere, Carlo Ancelotti has been speaking about the Champions League and says Bayern Munich are the team to beat should anyone be successful in lifting the trophy this year.

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