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Russian winger Denis Cheryshev has signed a new four-year deal at Real Madrid, the club has confirmed.

The 22-yer-old, who has featured heavily for Los Blancos in pre-season, has a deal that now runs until 2017.

The midfielder, who has been used as a full back by Carlo Ancelotti far, spent last season playing for Madrid’s second string, Castilla, where he scored 11 goals and provided eight assists.

Cheryshev had been linked with a move away from the Santiago Bernabeu with Everton and Malaga ready to offer him the chance of playing regular first team football. But the player’s father said this week his son wants to stay in the Spanish capital and fight for his place in the team.

He has played at every level for Russian from under 15’s to the full international side. His sole cap until now came against the United States in November last year.

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Spanish daily sports paper Marca claims Real Madrid are not interested in signing Liverpool’s Luis Suarez.

Much speculation has surrounded the Uruguayan this summer since he expressed his desire to leave the Anfield side for a club in the Champions League.

Los Blancos were thought to be on the look out for another forward following the departure of Gonzalo Higuain to Napoli, but Marca claims Carlo Ancelotti is happy to put his faith in young forwards Alvaro Morata and Jese Rodriguez.

Both the youngsters have signed fresh deals with Los Merengues in recent months.

If the Santiago Bernabeu side are not willing to make a move for 26-year-old Suarez, it leaves the path clear for Premier League side Arsenal to try and secure his signature.

The Gunners have had two bids turned down already, one of £35 million and second of £40 million plus £1 which activated a clause in the forward’s contract allowing him to speak to the club.

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Real Madrid defender Nacho says the team was happy with the fighting spirit they showed in clawing back a 2-0 deficit to draw 2-2 with Lyon on Wednesday night.

It was Los Blancos’ second pre-season game so far, and while building up match fitness is the focus, the players were delighted to show such battling qualities, Nacho said afterwards.

Clement Grenier and Lisandro gave the home side a comfortable looking lead at the Gerland Stadium, but two goals in the final 12 minutes from Alvaro Morata and Casemiro ensured the match ended all square.

Speaking to the club’s official website, the full back stated: “”I think it was a good test against a stronger team than the other day and it was useful to see how we were doing. After trailing 2-0, the team’s reaction was positive and we will take that away with us.”

When asked about what Carlo Ancelotti had to say after the match, Nacho admitted the dressing room was quiet, with the team’s thoughts elsewhere – and in particular with the victims or the rail disaster in Galicia.

He said: “We haven’t spoken much about football since we are shocked by the news of the train accident in Spain.”

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Madrid sports newspapers highlight the good performance of Real Madrid youngsters in last night’s friendly against Olympique Lyonnais which ended in a 2-2 draw.

“Better with the kids”, titles Marca. “Casemiro and Morata substitutions had game-changing impact on team mates”, they state. They both scored the goals that allowed Real to come back from a 2-0 in the last minutes. “Ancelotti has a lot of work to do”, Marca concludes.

As titles “The Cantera came to the rescue”, also pointing out the good work by Casemiro and Morata. The Madrid daily brings to its front page the lastest Real Madrid transfer news: “Real ties Jese and Higuain’s arrival unleashes madness in Napoli”.

Marca also emphasizes Real Madrid homegrown Jese Rodriguez’s renewal with the club. “The jewel is safe”, they publish. “Jese renews his contract for four seasons with a buy-out clause of 250 million euros”, they add. The Spanish under-20 international will be part of the first squad from now on.

 

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Youngsters Alvaro Morata and Casemiro savage a draw for Real Madrid against Olympique Lyonnais with two goals in 12 minutes at the end of the game.

Los Blancos suffered the French team better fitness during all the match, being unable to win the battle in the midfield against the strong Lyon’s centre-halfs.

Real barely resisted the first 15 minutes, until a cross from the right by Alexandre Lacazette was caught by Clement Grenier, who scored an incredible strike with a acrobatic volley, without even looking at the goal.

Los Merengues improved their performance in the second half, with Sami Khedira and Casemiro coming in to provide the midfield with more physical strengh.

The young Brazilian started causing troubles to their rival with his moves in attack. However, Lisandro increased the home team’s lead, sending to the net a header by Gael Danic.

With Karim Benzema on the bench, Real had been playing with a number 9 for a while. Carlo Ancelotti looked set to suffer his first defeat. But everything change when Morata came in.

Luka Modric started delivering great assists to Denis Cheryshev and Morata, and Real got closer to shortening the goal difference.

Morata dragged Madrid back into the game with a penalty shoot after Cheryshev fell in the area. And a few minutes later, Lyon’s goalkeeper failed in a corner and Casemiro sent the ball gently to the net with an easy header.

There was no time for Real to complete the come back with another goal in a game that was part of the payment of Karim Benzema’s transfer from Olympique Lyonnais.

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Real Madrid forward Jese Rodriguez has signed a new four-year deal at the club, putting an end to speculation he may leave.

The deal, which runs until 2017, sees the 20-year-old double his wages to around 1.2 million euros a year.

Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur had been interested in the striker, who scored 22 goals for Madrid’s second-string side last term but will now need to look elsewhere to sign a forward.

Shortly after the contract renewal was announced by the club, Jese took to Twitter to express his delight.

He said: “Very happy to have renewed my contract and to play for the best team in the world. I will give everything for this badge.”

The player has been with Los Blancos since the age of 14 and has worked his way up the ranks. He played an important part of the Spain Under-20 side at the under-20 World Cup, and helped them to the semi-final stage.

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Gonzalo Higuain has arrived to Napoli to sign the contract that will link him to the Azzurri for the next four years. Real Madrid have reached an agreement with the Italian club to sell the Argentinian for 37 million euros, plus another three depending on Napoli’s results in the next seasons.

Higuain, who arrived to Santiago Bernabeu from River Plate on 2006 for 12 million euros, will sign with the Italians after passing the medical tests. He will earn six million euros a year.

The Argentinian striker joins Raul Albiol and Jose Callejon, who have also moved from Madrid to Napoli this summer. Thus, Los Blancos have gathered a total 59 million euros this summer from the Azzurri’s.

The 25-year old has played six and a half seasons at Real Madrid, scoring 122 goals in 266 appearances, becoming the 12th top scorer in the club’s history.

With the arrival of former Real Madrid youth teams manager Rafa Benitez, Napoli is building a strong team to fight for the Scudetto and the Champions League.

After Edison Cavani’s departure to Paris Saint Germain, Higuain, who used to start from the bench in Madrid, will very likely become the first option for the striker position at Napoli, and will be a crucial piece of the team.

Watch this video of the arrival of Gonzalo Higuain to Napoli’s airport:

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Denis Cheryshev’s father has said the Real Madrid winger wants to fight for his place in the team rather than move elsewhere.

The 22-year-old has been linked with a move abroad in recent weeks with Premier League side Everton believed to be keen on taking the player to Goodison Park.

La Liga outfit Malaga were also thought to be interested in the young Russian midfielder who has played just 61 minutes of first team football in his career at the Santiago Bernabeu.

But Cheryshev’s father said the player wanted to make an impression under new boss Carlo Ancelotti and fight for his place in the first team.

He stated: “There is interest in Denis from Malaga, but also from other clubs in England and Germany.

“Denis does not think about these clubs now, but about earning a first-team spot at Madrid. For this is his single most important priority.”

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July 24th marks the 13th anniversary of one of the most controversial transfers of the 21st century and increased the rivalry between Real Madrid and Barcelona: that of Luis Figo. The Portuguese arrived at the Santiago Bernabeu after Los Blancos paid 60 million euros for one of their arch-rival’s captains.

Figo’s transfer had a dramatic impact for Florentino Perez to achieve the presidency of Real Madrid, as the signing of the Portuguese made him win the elections. His rival, Lorenzo Sanz, had won two Champions Leagues in the previous three years.

In an interview with Portuguese daily Publico, Figo admitted the bad relationship he had with Jose Luis Nunez, Barca’s president at that time, triggered his decision to join Real Madrid.

The person to blame for my signing for Real is Jose Luis Nunez. It was 2000, we were in the Belgium and Netherlands Eurocup when a gentleman named Florentino Perez showed an interest in hiring me. He said he was going to be a candidate for Real Madrid presidency elections. He stated that if he won, I would become a Los Blancos player. But before that I had the chance to sign for an Italian club that would pay my buy-out clause. My agent Jose Veiga told me all that”.

“At that moment we spoke to Nunez, who was going to leave the club that same summer. ‘The only thing you want is a pay rise, do whatever you want’, he told me. But I warned him: ‘I’m not lying to you, I will leave’. Half-way through the Eurocup Veiga told me about Florentino’s proposal. Apparently he was willing to pay my 60 million buy-out clause. I was suspicious about that all and went to tell Nunez again, asked him if he trusted me. He said: ‘I trust you. If they pay the money, you’ll leave’. I got very angry”.

The days passed and I was still irritated because I felt the club’s directors did not value me. I gave Veiga the order to negotiate. We decided to take Florentino’s offer and sign an outline agreement that stated if one of the parties backed down they would have to pay the other party 30 million euros. My agent, Veiga, accepted that responsibility, in case I did not go, he would pay”.

“After the Eurocup I was on holidays in Sardinia. Joan Gaspart was the new president of Barcelona and Florentino won the elections at Real Madrid. At that moment, the negotiations started. The same night Florentino was elected he took a plane with his team and my agent, and came to see me to Sardinia. The moment to make the decision arrived, but I was still unsure. I had pressure from all parts, including Joan Gaspart”.

“They even pressured me through my family. I finally decided to travel to Lisbon and sign a document in which I assumed all the responsibility for what could happen, exempting my agent. At the end, Real deposited the 60 million and presented me as their new player with the number 10 in my back. I was scared that day, but soon I checked the advantages of being a Madridista. I never regretted coming to this club, which is the biggest. It was also a matter of prestige”.

Figo played for Real Madrid until 2005, when he moved to Inter Milan, the club where he would retire having won with Los Blancos two La Liga titles, one Champions League, one Intercontinental Cup, one Supercopa and one European Supercup.

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The futures of Gonzalo Higuain, Fabio Coentrao and Kaka at Real Madrid have been thrown into further doubt after all three were left out of the squad to face Lyon in Los Blancos’ friendly match at the Gerland Stadium.

Although no official word has been made by either club yet, Madrid and Napoli are believed to have agreed a 40 million euro fee for Argentinean striker Higuain, with just the player’s personal terms to be sorted out.

The 25-year-old forward, who has spent six years at the Santiago Bernabeu, was believed to be close to a deal with Arsenal and Juventus earlier on this summer, but looks set to become the third player to leave for Napoli following in the footsteps of Raul Albiol and Jose Callejon.

Fabio Coentrao had missed a few training session in the past couple of days, although his absence from the squad will raise question marks over his long-term future in Madrid. He is believed to be keen on a move back to his old club Benfica after falling behind Marcelo in the pecking order at Madrid.

Meanwhile, former world player of the year Kaka has been linked with a number of clubs over recent months. Despite claims by new manager Carlo Ancelotti that the Brazilian is an important part of his plans, Los Blancos are expected to sell Kaka by the end of the transfer window, most likely to a club back in his homeland.

The squad that travels to Lyon is:

Goalkeepers: Diego López, Adán and Jesús.
Defenders: Pepe, Carvajal, Mateos, Casado and Nacho.
Midfielders: Khedira, Özil, Cheryshev, Di María, Isco, Illarra, Casemiro, Quini and Modric.
Strikers: Cristiano Ronaldo, Benzema and Morata.

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