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How Real’s exit could Affect Premier League

Real Madrid relinquished their hold on the Champions League after a 1-1 draw with Juventus at the Santiago Bernabeu in their semi-final, second leg, on Wednesday saw them exit 3-2 on aggregate. The defeat could also signal a break-up of the side that lifted club football’s top trophy only 12 months ago. The Daily Telegraph takes a look at 10 ways this could affect the English Premier League.

Real Madrid relinquished their hold on the Champions League after a 1-1 draw with Juventus at the Santiago Bernabeu in their semi-final, second leg, on Wednesday saw them exit 3-2 on aggregate. The defeat could also signal a break-up of the side that lifted club football’s top trophy only 12 months ago. The Daily Telegraph takes a look at 10 ways this could affect the English Premier League.

CARLO ANCELOTTI TO MANCHESTER CITY?

The Italian’s future at the Bernabeu could scarcely be bleaker: Real managers are sacked when they win trophies, let alone when they don’t, so Ancelotti will almost certainly come on the market this summer. That will interest Manchester City, given Manuel Pellegrini’s faltering grip on his job at Eastlands: Ancelotti’s free-flowing football and track record would certainly make him an obvious potential candidate.

GARETH BALE TO MANCHESTER UNITED?

The Welshman may be insistent that he has no plans to leave the Bernabeu, but the decision may be taken out of his hands. There is certain to be major upheaval at the club this summer and whether Bale remains at Real could well depend on who becomes the next head coach. Manchester United would dearly love to sign Bale this summer, and the increasingly fractious nature of his relationship with Real’s fans could make the deal more likely to happen.

DAVID DE GEA TO REAL?

The performance of Iker Casillas in the draw with Juventus simply increased the likelihood of Real’s veteran goalkeeper being bombed out by the club this summer. And that, in turn, will make United even more twitchy about the future of David de Gea: Real have made little secret of their admiration of the Spanish international, a boyhood Madrid fan. He has not accepted the offer of a new contract from United and could well be waiting to see what happens to Casillas at the end of the season.

PAUL CLEMENT BACK TO ENGLAND?

Real’s assistant manager is likely to leave — along with Ancelotti — at the end of the season and there will be a queue of English clubs wanting to talk to him. There was interest from Queens Park Rangers, although they now seem to be edging towards Chris Ramsey on a permanent basis, but with other posts such as West Ham, Newcastle and Fulham all likely to become available this summer, there should be no shortage of options for the former Chelsea player.

JAVIER HERNANDEZ BACK TO UNITED?

The best chance of the United striker extending his loan spell with Real into a second season probably rested on Ancelotti remaining in situ — and that is not going to happen. Hernandez will therefore have to return to Old Trafford, where he faces an uncertain future: He would appear to have little chance of forcing his way into Louis van Gaal’s plans, but there should be other clubs wanting to take him on.

SERGIO AGUERO TO REAL MADRID?

Real’s default to seeing their hugely-paid megastars failing to deliver the goods is usually to sign another hugely-paid megastar. And Aguero, a long-term target of Perez, must be high on their shopping list, especially if Bale is offloaded. The Argentine would not have passed up the stack of opportunities Real created against Juventus and would doubtless jump at the chance to move to the Bernabeu, even if he has not expressed any particular unhappiness at City.

SERGIO RAMOS TO ENGLAND?

The Spain international might be a fixture at the Bernabeu, but he was widely criticised for his performance against Juventus and looks to be on borrowed time. Bayern Munich have been widely linked with a move for him this summer, but there would surely be interest from the Premier League as well. Inded, given Arsenal’s lack of “characters”, Arsene Wenger could probably do worse than consider a move for him.

ISCO TO ARSENAL?

The Real midfielder is a popular figure at the Bernabeu, so it seems unlikely that the club would sell him, but it is difficult to second-guess Perez. The Real president might want to inject more stardust into his midfield, which could leave Isco on the fringes: Arsenal and City have both been heavily linked with him.

KARIM BENZEMA TO LIVERPOOL?

Another high-profile striker who might be fearing for his future in the event of a Real clear-out, the French international has been linked to a number of Premier League clubs, although none have greater need of him than Liverpool, given their struggles in front of goal.

CRISTIANO RONALDO BACK TO THE PREMIER LEAGUE?

Unlikely, perhaps, but Ronaldo is not on as firm ground as he once was at Real. Indeed, the prospect of dispensing with the single most difficult political issue in the dressing room — Ronaldo’s unchallenged status as No 1 — might even be attractive for Real’s powerbrokers as they seek to overhaul the squad. United would love to have him back — even if they could not buy both him and Bale.

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