Real Madrid manager Rafael Benitez has spoken out on the futures of Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema, reports the Daily Express.
Manchester United have been linked to the former [Manchester Evening News], while there have been rumours that Los Merengues were going to accept a bid from Arsenal for the latter [Metro]. However, the former Liverpool boss seems adamant that he won’t be allowing the pair to leave the Bernabeu.
Both took part in Los Blancos’ 4-1 pre-season win over Manchester City on Friday, and look set to be key parts of the team with the Spanish giants. Ronaldo scored twice in the encounter, and Benzema also hit the back of the net.
“People were talking about something that happened in training,” Benitez said on Ronaldo, “we can see tonight (against City) that he is happy and playing well and scoring goal. In football you have to just concentrate on the future and for us it is positive.
“People are always asking about players that maybe we will buy and I say I don’t talk because they belong to other teams,” he added, considering Ronaldo and his French teammate.
“In this case, Karim Benzema is our player and I am sure that he will stay with us.”
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This will be a blow to the Red Devils, who will have been hoping that a marquee signing such as their former hero Ronaldo could turn them in to title challengers. As things stand, they will have to continue their search for a new impact player , with the possible loss of Angel Di Maria to Paris Saint-Germain [Daily Mirror] making the need for new recruits all the more pressing.
The Gunners will have also been hurt by Benitez’s comments, with a new striker surely vital if they are also going to challenge Chelsea for the Premier League title this season. There have been doubts over the ability of Olivier Giroud at the highest level, while Theo Walcott, Danny Welbeck, and Joel Campbell could all be more suited to playing out wide in supporting roles, rather than as central strikers.