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Real Madrid Olimpic Xativa match preview

Olimpic de Xativa have made the trip to the Madrid for tonight’s Copa del Rey second leg tie looking to pull off an enormous upset by defeating Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu.

In the away leg two weeks ago Los Blancos were held to a 0-0 draw by the third division side, but should defeat the minnows comfortably to progress to the round of 16 to face Osasuna.

Olimpic de Xativa are currently ninth in Segunda Division B Group three. They had a poor start to the season, losing four of their first nine league games, but have recovered and have gone unbeaten in their last eight matches in the division, and have not conceded in their past nine in all competitions.

Carlo Ancelotti has told the press that Gareth Bale will not feature in the match due to a slight injury picked up in training, and is going to be replaced by Angel Di Maria.

The Italian would like the game secured early on, to prevent the chance of extra-time with an important fixture away to Valencia at the Mestalla on Sunday night and the team still five points behind Atletico Madrid and Barcelona at the top of La Liga.

Probable line-ups:

Real Madrid: Casillas; Arbeloa, Pepe, Nacho, Carvajal; Casemiro, Illaramendi; Di Maria, Isco, Jese; Morata.

Olimpic Xativa: Gonzalez; Belda, Alcazar, Sanchis, Peris, Palop; Mosquera, Marenya, Sanchez, Samu; Moya.

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Former Bayern Munich boss and current Switzerland manager Ottmar Hitzfeld has hit out at the lavish spending by Real Madrid last summer and called it unfair.

Los Blancos made a number of high profile purchases, headlined by the 91-million-euro deal to secure the services of Gareth Bale from Tottenham Hotspur. Asier Illarramendi and Isco were also expensive buys, in a summer that saw the club part with around 180 million euros.

Although some of that was recouped through the sales of Mesut Ozil, Gonzalo Higuain, Raul Albiol and Jose Callejon, the nine-time European Cup winners’ net spend stood at around 70 million euros when the transfer window closed in early September. And the following month, it was revealed the club’s debts stood at around 500 million euros.

In an interview with Futbol Tactico, Hitzfeld said that sort of spending should not be allowed if a club already carries huge debts, and encouraged clubs to be responsible with their finances. Bayern Munich run a tight ship and are known for their financial prudence, while Premier League leaders Arsenal have actually come in for criticism  from so called football experts for not spending money they don’t have and only splashing the cash when they have raised the finances themselves.

Hitzfeld stated:  “It [Bale’s signing] is incomprehensible. I do not understand how you have so much debt. It seems unfair that Madrid can buy these players with the amount of debt that they have. It’s not fair.”

“[Bayern] are a healthy club, which have no debt,” he continued.“They will only sign players according to their own economic potential. They have paid large sums, but have never owed money to any organisation or club. There is no comparison between the teams.”

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Santiago Bernabeu Stadium

Real Madrid, Barcelona and five other Spanish clubs are in trouble with the European Commission. The EC is undergoing an investigation into the teams who allegedly received illegal state aid, Spanish Foreign Affairs minister Jose Garcia-Margallo has announced.

The EC will begin the thorough investigation among the two Spanish giants along with Elche, Hercules, Athletic Bilbao, Osasuna and Valencia and determining if they had obtained the illegal grants from the Spanish government as federal assistance Garcia-Margallo said.

Although the Spanish government denies the allegations and Garcia-Margallo defends the accused teams, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson confirmed Garcia-Margallo’s comments despite refusing to be identified for political reasons.

The Spanish Foreign Affairs minister said in Brussels “it is obvious that the Government will defend the seven clubs which are all part of the brand Spain.”

The EC will take a look at the tax statuses of the four fan-owned clubs – Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico Bilbao and Osasuna – since they are all labeled as non-corporations and may have been receiving unreasonable tax breaks while also having the advantage of obtaining exlusive tax exemptions.

If the teams are found convicted of acquiring aid, they will have to repay the amount. The Spanish clubs will have four months to prove their innocence before a decision is finalized.

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Real Madrid press report 18-12-13

Real Madrid will face Olimpic Xativa in the second leg of the Copa del Rey tonight and Carlo Ancelotti will give the youngsters a chance to shine.

“It’s time for the youth,” Marca titles, pointing out Ancelotti will display “a line-up full of youngsters against a third division side.”

Both Madrid sports newspapers publish different reports on Olimpic’s trip to the Santiago Bernabeu. Marca’s headline is “Travelling to a dream.” “They drove 400 kilometres by bus,” they explain.

“It took them two hours to find their hotel,” As reports, together of a picture of the players walking through the streets of Madrid.

Los Blancos will have to win tonight at the Santiago Bernabeu to qualify for the next round of the Copa del Rey, after a 0-0 draw in the away leg.

PRISA’s sport daily also highlights in its front page the fact that the European Commission has started proceedings against seven Spanish clubs, including Real Madrid. “Europe suspicious of Spanish football,” they title.

* Follow Real Madrid News on Twitter

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Real Madrid and Sami Khedira have reached an agreement to extend the German international contract with Los Blancos until 2018, Spanish digital newspaper ElConfidencial.com has claimed.

Despite the midfielder suffering a season-ending injury last month in an international game with Germany, Florentino Perez wants to reward Khedira’s good work with an improvement in his contract conditions.

ElConfidencial.com states the new deal will be announce in January, when the player is expected to return to Madrid from Germany, where he’s taking the first steps of his ligament injury recovery process.

Khedira, who was among the low profile players of the team earning around two million euros a year, will make 3.5 million per season with this new contract.

The 26-year-old was the second player of the squad to have played more minutes this season until he fell injured in a Germany national team friendly against Italy on November 15th. In fact, after missing him, Ancelotti had to completely change his system, from a 4-3-3 formation to 4-2-3-1.

Khedira was expected to make his return by June 2014, just in time to play the World Cup with Germany. However, his knee is improving fast and he could get back to playing in April.

* Follow Alejandro Gonzalez on Twitter @alejandrognieto

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Gareth Bale and Sergio Ramos will miss Real Madrid Copa del Rey match against Olimpic Xativa due to physical problems, the Spanish club have revealed.

The Welshman suffered a contusion during today’s training session that has caused him pain in the calf muscle. Carlo Ancelotti has affirmed he will rest Bale tomorrow for injury prevention.

“Gareth has taken a knock to the calf,” Ancelotti told the press. “We will see how it evolves in the coming hours but I do not think it is a problem for Sunday’s match,” he added.

The Italian confirmed Angel di Maria will replace Bale in the starting line-up.

Meanwhile, Ramos suffers from back pain and has trained in the gym for the second consecutive day. He will also rest against third division side Olimpic Xativa.

Both Los Blancos players will join suspended Cristiano Ronaldo on the sidelines, as their team seek to qualify for the next round of the Copa del Rey after a goalless draw in the first leg.

On the other hand Marcelo returned to normal training after suffering muscle problems, although he’s not expected to feature against Olimpic.

The game will be played at 20.30 GTM on Wednesday at the Santiago Bernabeu.

* Follow Alejandro Gonzalez on Twitter @alejandrognieto

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Real Madrid are apparently interested in signing attacking midfielder Eden Hazard from Chelsea in the January transfer window, according to Sports Direct News.

The Belgian has been a revelation in West London since arriving from Lille in the summer of 2012 for a reported 37 million euros, so would cost a substantial fee.

Part of the move could be funded by Madrid wheeling and dealing however, in particular Angel di Maria who has been heavily linked to moneybags Ligue 1 side Monaco, and Hazard could be the replacement for the Argentine.

Hazard would certainly add another attacking threat, after scoring 22 goals and setting up another 23 in just 82 games for Chelsea, and is one of Chelsea’s key players, which would make Real’s move an ambitious one, especially after the Blues boss Jose Mourinho left the Bernabeu in the summer in a particularly fractious way.

Where Hazard would fit into the Madrid lineup is another problem, particularly as Ancelotti likes to use a front three of Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema. The first two are almost definitely first picks on the team sheet, and Hazard is unlikely to be a good fit in a striking role, a position where Benzema is a natural.

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Schalke coach Jens Keller has said facing Real Madrid in the last 16 of the Champions League is ‘fantastic’, with Julian Draxler and Benedikt Howedes excited at the prospect.

The Spanish side will travel to the Veltins Arena on February 26th with the second leg at the Santiago Bernabeu scheduled for March 18th.

“It’s a great draw for us and our fans,” a positive Keller told the press.

“It’s a fantastic challenge for our players to play against the most famous club in the world with players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Iker Casillas and Gareth Bale. We are really looking forward to it.”

Schalke Captain Benedikt Howedes believes his side can cause an upset, despite the ominous task laid ahead of them.

“I am pleased with the draw of Real Madrid,” he said. “It is too bad that Sami Khedira can not be there due to his injury.

“To play at the Bernabeu is something completely new for me. Even if Real are the absolute favourites, I see an outside chance for us.”

German under-21 Julian Draxler has been linked with a host of clubs in recent months, including Los Blancos, and believes that playing against Carlo Ancelotti’s men in Madrid will be the fulfilment of a dream.

“This pairing is a real Champions League highlight,” the 20-year-old declared. “It has always been my dream to play once against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu.

“It could not have been much more difficult a draw but we will face the task at hand. I look forward to the two games.”

Follow Louis Gibberd-Thomas on Twitter: @mercutio156

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Real Madrid press report 17-12-13

Madrid sports newspapers put their focus today on the Champions League draw that revealed the rivals of Spanish clubs in the Last 16 round.

“The Good, the Bad and the Ugly,” titles As, in a reference to the title of Sergio Leone’s movie, claiming Real Madrid got the good one being paired with Schalke 04.

Atletico Madrid’s opponent AC Milan is the ugly one for As, while Barcelona got the bad one: Manchester City.

“The Kun Aguero threat,” is Marca’s main headline. The Madrid daily states “the worst possible rival will pay a visit to the Camp Nou.”

“A match between mines,” they title in a reference to Real Madrid’s visit to Gelsenkirchen. “Schalke is an easy rival,” they claim, although they point out Madrid have a “German curse: 25 five matches, only one victory.”

Both Madrid dailies also emphasize the fact that Diego Armando Maradona has called for Cristiano Ronaldo to win the Ballon d’Or.

“Maradona votes for Cristiano,” says As. “Leo Messi has suffered many injuries this year, Ronaldo deserves it,” the Argentinian told the press.

* Follow Real Madrid News on Twitter

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Napoli have joined the fight to sign Xabi Alonso as a free agent next summer, according to Italian website Calcionews24.

Real Madrid’s midfield hasn’t reached a contract renewal agreement with Los Blancos yet and he could start negotiating with other clubs from January 1st, since his commitment with Real ends in June 2014.

The Italian website claims Rafa Benitez would be willing to reinforce his midfield and he could have added Alonso to his wish list. The Madrid-born manager already coached Alonso at Liverpool, winning one Champions League.

Calcionews24 states the good relationship between Alonso and Benitez might facilitate the player’s move to Napoli. In fact, they claim the coach has already phoned the midfielder to speak about the possible transfer.

Nevertheless, it won’t be easy for Benitez to convince Alonso, since the Basque is expected to have tempting offers from Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal, Juventus or even Paris Saint Germain.

Real Madrid will also fight to keep their midfielder. Carlo Ancelotti has already told Alonso he wants him to stay, and Florentino Perez has reportedly increased his initial contract extension offer after the Basque asked for a ten-million-euro bonus.

* Follow Alejandro Gonzalez on Twitter @alejandrognieto

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