Sergio Ramos to Manchester United: Real Madrid 'told' to accept final £35m offer if they are to have any chance of signing David De Gea
United want to add Ramos to their rapidly increasing squad but face a stalemate in their attempts as Real Madrid want De Gea in return
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Your support makes all the difference.Manchester United are ready to make a second and final offer for Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos and will tell the Spanish club to accept their £35m offer or forget any hope of signing David De Gea this summer, it has been reported.
United want Ramos to strengthen their defence after already taking huge strides to address their midfield options following the signings of Bastian Schweinsteiger and Morgan Schneiderlin earlier this week.
With forward Memphis Depay and right-back Matteo Darmian also completing moves to Old Trafford, the club are keen to seal the move for Ramos, but Real’s decision to play hardball over any transfer is seeing them run out of patience.
The fact that Real want to sign De Gea as a replacement for Iker Casillas – who has completed a move to Porto – gives United an advantage in negotiations though, and they will demand that the Spanish club allows talks with Ramos to begin in return of accepting an offer for the goalkeeper.
According to Spanish newspaper AS, Real have told United that a bid of €90m (£63m) will be enough to trigger talks over a move for Ramos, but United are convinced they can lower that fee given that they believe Ramos wants to leave the club.
Having seen stalwart goalkeeper Iker Casillas forced out of the club, Ramos is understood to be concerned with how Real’s core players are being treated, and fears that he could face a similar exit that saw Casillas leave via a low-key press conference.
Real president Florentino Perez has come under huge criticism from the Real fans who feel that he is risking the club’s identity in forcing their long-serving players out. However, when speaking at Casillas’ press conference, Perez was defiant in that Ramos was not for sale this summer.
"There are players on contract that the club does not want to let go and are not going to leave,” said Perez, amid chants of “Ramos is not for sale from fans in the stadium.
Ramos is set to be confirmed at Real’s new captain after stepping up from his role as Casillas’ deputy last season, and the 2010 World Cup winner has joined the squad for their pre-season tour of Australia despite the question marks surrounding his future.
De Gea meanwhile is also away on pre-season tour duty as the goalkeeper was named in United’s squad for a four-match programme in the United States, and any move involving the two players looks likely to be put on hold until both clubs return to their respective nations.
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