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With the Copa del Rey final just two days away much of the focus in the Madrid sports press is on the build up to the game.

And As uses its front page to highlight the ongoing rift between Los Blancos’ players and boss Mourinho, with the headline ‘Therapy without Mou’ alongside a picture of many of the first team squad enjoying a meal at a restaurant without the manager.

Marca also has the picture, posted by Sergio Ramos on Twitter, on the front page, although it has opted to call for calm ahead of the match, with the headline ‘Remember – It’s just a football match’.

According to As, Real are the overwhelming favourites for the Copa based on betting figures.  A one euro bet on Los Blancos will give a return of €1.49 should they win, while an Atletico victory would return €6.12.

Madrid ‘will not pay Ancelotti buy out clause’

As well as the pre-match build up, Marca also has a story on the search for a new boss for when Jose Mourinho calls it a day or is fired.

It claims that having paid compensation for Manuel Pellegrini and Mourinho, club president Florentino Perez does not want to be in that situation, and have given the PSG boss a 10-day deadline to organise his departure from the French champions.

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Iker Casillas will be in Spain’s squad for this summer’s Confederations Cup, national coach Vicente de Bosque has confirmed.

Speaking at an event in Cairo organised by the African Football Confederation, Del Bosque said Casillas would be selected despite not playing for Real Madrid since breaking his finger at the end of January.

Even though he has returned to full fitness, Los Blancos’ boss Jose Mourinho has opted to stick with Diego Lopez between the sticks.

Del Bosque said the Real Madrid captain would be a valuable asset to the Spain squad, even if he’s not picked to play all the games.

He stated: “We must respect his career, and his 143 international caps. We will see if he plays, or another colleague, but what is sure is that he will be in the list of 23.”

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Mezut Ozil is set to return to the Real Madrid side for the Copa del Rey final against Atletico de Madrid on Friday evening.

The German international injured his ankle in Madrid’s 4-3 win over Valladolid on May 4 and hasn’t featured since but looks set to come back into the team for the derby final.

While the return of the playmaker will come as a boost for fans hopeful of seeing their side win the Copa, there are concerns over the fitness of other important first team players, including Sergio Ramos.

The World Cup winner hasn’t played since Madrid’s narrow Champions League exit against Borussia Dortmund on April 30. With Pepe dropped from the team following his criticism of Jose Mourinho’s treatment of Iker Casillas, and Raphael Varane out injured, it leaves Ricardo Carvalho and Raul Albiol as the only two fit centre backs.

Full backs Marcelo and Alvaro Arbeloa have not resumed to full training yet, but are expected to be fit following slight knocks.

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Only 7% of Madrid fans would pick Neymar over Bale as the most necessary signing for the team, according to a poll among As readers.

The other Madrid sports newspaper, Marca, also brings the possible transfer of the Brazilian to its home page, claiming he is a “mine of gold”.

“He tops the list of sportsmen with more income from sponsors, ahead of Messi and McIlroy”, they title. Cristiano Ronaldo is 8th in that list, according to Marca.

Both Madrid daily papers also highlight the interview of Paris Saint Germain president, Nasser Al-Kheilafi, with L’Equipe, in which he admitted Real Madrid have tried to sign Carlo Ancelotti for the next season.

As publishes an interview with Spanish National Team coach Vicente Del Bosque. The former Real Madrid manager admits Iker Casillas will be on the squad for the next international game, but “we’ll see if starts”, he says.

Both papers remind that the Copa del Rey final will take place in three days. “The last effort”, titles Marca, who claim that the key players of Real are short of physical shape at this point of the season.

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Real Madrid are in talks to sign unsettled Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney, according to reports.

Caughtoffside said Real president Florentino Perez has already held preliminary discussions with United’s chief executive David Gill about the possibility of signing Rooney in a £33 million deal.

The 27-year-old striker handed in a transfer request last week – the second time he has done so in his Old Trafford career. At this stage it is only said to be a verbal request and he has not followed it up with a written request.

Rooney has spent nine years at Old Trafford following his move from Everton, where he played under David Moyes – the man set to replace the outgoing Sir Alex Ferguson.

Caughoffside reported Gill and Perez also discussed the potential transfer of Cristiano Ronaldo back to the Red Devils, although Los Blancos are not keen to let him go.

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The president of Paris Saint-Germain, Nasser Al-Khelaifi, has confirmed Real Madrid have asked the French club for permission to start negotiations with their manager, Carlo Ancelotti.

In an interview with French sports newspaper L’Equipe, Al-Khelaifi admitted that “A few days ago, Real Madrid’s general director contacted me to talk to Ancelotti”.

Al-Khelaifi very politely declined Real’s petition: “If you want to hire Carlo, let me remind you that he still has a year left on his contract”.

“So please respect his contract and respect our club. We respect all clubs, and we expect the same in return. Perhaps we aren’t currently as big as Real Madrid, but we deserve the same respect,” he added.

According to Al-Khelaifi, Real’s general director, Jose Angel Sanchez, apologised and explained he thought Ancelotti’s contract was expiring this year.

“I told him he was mistaken and he said they would take that into account. We want Carlo to stay. Everyone loves him here, the players, the fans, and myself”, he concluded.

Ancelotti has been linked with a move to the Bernabeu for weeks, as Jose Mourinho’s replacement. He even admitted on Sunday that he would talk to PSG about his future “at the end of the season”. However, it seems pretty clear that PSG’s president is intent to force him to finish his contract at Paris.

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Sami Khedira could become a Chelsea this summer if Jose Mourinho becomes the next Blues’ boss, according to reports.

The Daily Mirror said the Portuguese manager, who is widely expected to return to the club he previously managed between 2004 and 2007, is keen to make the German midfielder his main priority.

With Chelsea finishing some way behind champions Manchester United in the Premier League, Mourinho would immediately start a job of strengthening key areas of the squad.

And with Roman Abramovich’s millions at his disposal, a £20million offer for Khedira would not be a problem.

The 39-cap international signed for Real Madrid in 2010 from Stuttgart and has become a key component of Mourinho’s squad.

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Arsenal are close to a agreeing a deal with Real Madrid for Argentina forward Gonzalo Higuain, reports in Spain have said.

According to sport.es, the North London outfit will pay £18.6 million to land the striker on a five-year deal.

Higuain’s future has been subject of much speculation in recent weeks, with Juventus and Tottenham also believed to be keen to secure his signature.

He has struggled to hold down a regular place at the Bernabeu this year, but has still scored an impressive 14 goals in 17 starts in La Liga. In total, he has scored 105 goals in 188 appearances for Los Blancos.

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World Cup winning midfielder Xabi Alonso has rubbished reports Real Madrid players have been ordered to keep quiet in a bid to keep the peace in the build up to the Copa del Rey final.

Media reports had suggested the squad had been told to bite their tongues following Pepe’s outburst over the treatment of Iker Casillas in the latter stages of this season.

Since speaking out, Pepe has found himself out of the Madrid squad, with Jose Mourinho opting not to pick him for the last two La Liga games.

Speaking to the club’s official website following the 1-1 draw with Espanyol, Alonso is quoted as saying: “Everyone can say what they want to and there is nothing to be scared about.”

He also took the opportunity to congratulate Barcelona on winning the title, and admitted Los Blancos’ challenge never really got going following an indifferent start to the campaign.

“Our poor start to the season has meant that we could not fight to the end,” he stated.

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As claims in its front page that Real Madrid has offered Brazilian star Neymar Da Silva a six year contract in which he would earn the same salary as Cristiano Ronaldo: 10 million euros.

At the moment, the young forward is almost earning that at Santos, although most is paid by sponsors and just a small part by the club.

The Spanish daily also highlights the victory of Barcelona against their next Copa del Rey rivals Atletico de Madrid after an injured Messi had left the Blaugrana with one player less: “Atletico give Barça the win”, they say.

Marca titles “Messi’s injury scares during the celebration”.

Both newspapers emphasize the loss of the basketball team in the final of the Euroleague after throwing a 17 points lead against Olympiacos. “The dream of the 9th European Cup is postponed”, says Marca. “Spanoulis leaves Real withouth the 9th”, claims As.

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