Real Madrid in brief: James, Aubameyang, Varane, Morata...

Varane speaks to Pogba

Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane spoke to the media on Sunday and - in addition to scotching talk of leaving - discussed transfer target Paul Pogba. "He’s a friend of mine and of course we’ve spoken about it [a potential Real move]. He’s an amazing player but I don’t know what he’ll do. That’s up to him."

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Aubameyang nod to Real

Borussia Dortmund ace Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has told German TV broadcaster ZDF that no-one but Real Madrid could lure him away from the Bundesliga outfit. "The only club I could leave Dortmund for is Real," said the Gabon international.

Kroos runs into Clement

Real midfielder Toni Kroos remains on holiday following Euro 2016 - and on Sunday bumped into former Madrid assistant Paul Clement at Lake Starnberg in southern Germany. Kroos links back up with Los Blancos on 31 July.

James out for more Real game time

Colombian star James Rodríguez has sent a message to boss Zinedine Zidane ahead of the new campaign, telling Caracol TV: "I hope to be able to play more".

Morata-Benzema partnership against Sevilla?

With Cristiano Ronaldo ruling himself out of August's UEFA Super Cup and Gareth Bale's involvement in the clash with Sevilla in doubt, Zidane experimented by pairing strikers Álvaro Morata and Karim Benzema up front in training on Sunday.

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Ramis turns 46

Ex-Real Madrid Castilla head coach Luis Miguel Ramis celebrates his 46th birthday today. Ramis was replaced at the Castilla helm by Santiago Solari, who took charge of his first game on Sunday: a 3-1 win over Gimnástica Segoviana.