Friday 17 July 2015 12:02, UK
Manchester United transfer target Sergio Ramos will be staying at Real Madrid, according to new Real manager Rafael Benitez.
United made a £28.6m bid for the Spain international defender in June, with Sky sources understanding Ramos wanted to leave the Bernabeu and head to Old Trafford.
So far this summer United have bought midfielders Bastian Schweinsteiger and Morgan Schneiderlin, right-back Matteo Darmian and winger Memphis Depay, while offloading Robin van Persie and Nani as part of a major overhaul of the squad.
But it now appears they may miss out on one of their top defensive targets.
Ramos travelled with the Madrid squad for their pre-season tour of Australia and Benitez – who was appointed as successor to Carlo Ancelotti six weeks ago – has now confirmed that the centre-back remains "an integral part" of his plans.
"In terms of Sergio Ramos, there's a lot of talk about his situation," Benitez told reporters in Melbourne.
"For me, he is an enormous professional. In person, he applies himself, he does everything that the team and I ask of him.
"And for me, the matter (is that) the president has already commented that he is staying with the club.
"I have spoken to him at length in the summer about his ideas, about his future. I see Sergio as an integral part of our team, he's a winner and that's what we need in our team."
