Real Madrid round-up: Isco, Mariano, Ronaldo, Bale...
Isco has reportedly turned down an offer from Juventus and is planning on a Madrid stay, while the papers note that Mariano is eligible for Spain.
Isco
The midfielder has reportedly turned down an offer to join Juventus and is instead holding out for a new contract at the Bernabéu, despite the emergence of Marco Asensio leaving him with fewer playing options that last season. La Gazzetta reports that Juve have offered 40 million euros for Isco.
Mariano
The Real forward, who has played for the Dominican Republic at international level, is eligible to play for Spain. Mariano was born in Barcelona and his one appearance for the Dominican Republic was in a friendly against Haiti. Fifa regulations allow players who have not represented a country in an official match to play for another at full international level.
Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo has set his return date to September 10, meaning he will sit out this weekend’s match against Celta but be available for the visit of Osasuna. It remains to be seen if Portugal manager Fernando Santos will call Ronaldo up to the squad for a friendly against Gibraltar and a World Cup qualifier against Switzerland in Basel during the first international break of the season. Santos will announce his squad on Friday.
Bale
“After winning the first Champions League, I knew the [UEFA] Super Cup was in Cardiff, so it was an amazing moment for me personally. But to have the Champions League final in my home town is an even bigger motivation,” the Welshman told Uefa.com about his objectives for the season ahead.
Champions League draw
Real will find out their opponents for the group stage of the Champions League when the draw is made in Monaco on Thursday afternoon. Also during the ceremony, the Best Player in Europe 2015-16 Award will be decided, with Bale and Ronaldo up against Antoine Griezmann for the continental gong.