Franck Ribery has admitted he wants to leave Bayern Munich - but warned Chelsea and Manchester United that he only has eyes for Real Madrid.
Chelsea are determined to make a final push for the France forward, despite his German employers insisting he is not for sale.
And United could reignite their interest after missing out on fellow France forward Karim Benzema, who yesterday agreed to join Real Madrid from Lyon for a fee that could reach £35million.
And now 26-year-old Ribery has tried to force a move to the Bernabeu by going public on his desire to join the New Galacticos.
'It's decided, I want to leave,' he told respected French newspaper L'Equipe. 'It will be to Real or nothing.'
Ribery also said that he would, 'wait and see how things go. Then I would quickly like to have a discussion with the Bayern management'.
Reports in Spain, meanwhile, say Madrid's next target is Valencia attacking midfielder David Silva, who could join for £21.5million.
Madrid newspaper Marca claims an agreement to sign Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa from Liverpool is imminent and that 23-year-old Silva - also a target for Liverpool - is next.
Silva's capture would take Madrid's summer outlay above the £200m mark - twice the amount it would cost to buy Newcastle United - even before fees for Alonso and Arbeloa are taken into account.
Bayern have suggested the fee for Ribery could be £60m, but his desire to leave could drive down the price.
The former Marseille player will turn down any offer to extend his current contract which is worth £115,000 a week and runs until 2011, meaning next summer his value would depreciate significantly.
But both Bayern and Ribery are aware there are few superstars left for United to recruit - Valencia's David Villa is set to join Barcelona - and an offer of around £50m plus £150,000 a week is likely to secure his signature.
It would also represent good business for Bayern who signed Ribery for a club record £18m from Marseille two years ago.
However, Bayern are still insisting publicly that there will be no deal. Bayern general manager said: 'Franck wants to go to Real? For us, it changes absolutely nothing. Life is not always a fairy-tale.
'Real did not gave us a concrete proposal. Real's directors have wanted to come to Munich and we have told them they would do better to save on a few tickets. We do not need their money and we keep Franck against all odds.'
The Bundesliga club's new boss Louis van Gaal said: 'I want to lead the world's best players and Ribery is part of that.'
Thursday, July 2, 2009
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