Sergio Ramos has told Real Madrid that he wants to leave. His destination, it seeems, is Manchester United.
Reports from Spain suggest that the 29-year-old defender is currently involved in a tug-of-war between two of the biggest clubs in football thanks to a contract stand-off and an imminent deal for United goalkeeper David De Gea.
Real Madrid's interest in De Gea is no secret at all but United bosses have told Madrid that the goalie will not be sold unless Ramos is included in the deal. Ramos feels he's not paid enough at Real and wants a new bigger contract but Real's President Florentino Perez is not keen on meeting his valuation. On the other hand, United have all the money in the world and are ready to give Ramos a deal which will make him one of the best earners in the club.
Former Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon has already gone on record and said: "It is clear Sergio Ramos is not happy at the Santiago Bernabeu." There have been reports flying in that the relation between some players and Perez is awful, and Ramos is one of them.
Ramos thinks that he is being made to look greedy, and the club is planting negative stories in the press - a tactic Perez has used with other players in the past either to negotiate or to force them out the door.
Both Real and United have been quiet in the market so far - although Red Devils have been linked with almost every player in the world. Madrid have been strongly linked with De Gea. The revolving door at Real Madrid is still spinning. We all know the transfer stratergy of theirs - they are after the biggest players in the world but every year one of their star leaves the club. This year the victim might be Sergio Ramos and Iker Casillas. Ramos, Casillas and De Gea are still in this merry go round of transfer market.
Old Trafford CEO Ed Woodward knows how desperate Real are to land De Gea this summer and will not be bullied by the Spanish giants. So, very cunningly, United are throwing names at Perez. First one was Gareth Bale, then Karim Benzema and now it's Ramos. Both clubs want the deal to happen this summer because Madrid want a new keeper and United don't want to lose theirs for nothing next year as De Gea has just one year left in his contract.
Iker does not know what's in store in for him and is strongly linked with Tottenham Hotspur, who know that once United sell De Gea, they will be after their No.1 goalie Hugo Lloris. Then it comes to the defence part of United. The club from Manchester is after a defender as well.
First one to link was Mats Hummels but United's interest in him has declined over the past few weeks. Last week it was looking like Valencia's CB Nico Otamendi is their main target but Real are also said to be interested in him. This week suddenly Ramos has come into the picture and Otamendi is also dragged into this wheel of fortune.
Ramos would rather stay at Real if they agree a new contract but he is also quite prepared to leave if money valuation is not met. There is also a theory that if United meet the money part of Ramos, Real would not mind selling Ramos and then sign Otamendi to replace him. Otamendi is younger than Ramos and will come cheap as well.
This saga could be drawn out even further by United's preference for Lloris. Spurs are also one of the clubs considering moving for Casillas and he could be the right man for Spurs considering his age, alhough the size of Tottenham club can be a problem for convincing him.
Until the De Gea, Casillas, Ramos love triangle is resolved, it seems clubs are ready to take their time and test the value in the market. Meanwhile, Liverpool has agreed a deal to sign Brazilian playmaker Firmino. The versatile Hoffenheim forward was also linked with United who are also interested in signing a striker. This could make them go back to the Santiago Bernabeu for their frontman Karim Benzema if Ramos deal does not go through. Although it looks unlikely at the moment, we never saw Ozil to Arsenal or Di Maria to Man United happening as well.
Chelsea are closing in on United flop Falcao to replace club legend Didier Drogba which could trigger Remy to West Ham. But it seems that the biggest movement will be triggered by the two richest clubs in world football.
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