Real Madrid lunch at Casa Juan

The entire Real Madrid squad and coaching staff met at restaurant Casa Juan
Real Madrid’s first football team met at Casa Juan for their first luncheon of the new season. The entire squad and coaching staff left Valdebebas after this morning’s training session. The first to arrive were Fernando Gago and Di Maria. Coach Jose Mourinho was the last person to enter the restaurant.

Team captains Iker Casillas and Sergio Ramos came up with the idea of meeting up for lunch to begin the season with positive feelings. Casillas, the new signings and Jose Mourinho gave short speeches filled with affection for everyone present.

The first to leave the restaurant, around 16:00, was new signing Carvalho. The rest left a few minutes later, the last being defender Raul Albiol.

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Shirts - Kit - Jersey (Photo Gallery)

Benzema 2010/2011 Home Jersey

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Away Kit Sock

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Away Kit Sock

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Away Kit Sock

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Away Kit

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Away Kit

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Away Kit Sock

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Home GoalKeeper (Iker Casillas) Kit

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Home Goal Keeper Kit

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Home Mesut Ozil Kit

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Home Cristiano Ronaldo Kit

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Home Kit Sock

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Home Kit Sock

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Home Kit Sock

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Home Kit Short

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Home Kit Short

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Home Kit Short

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Home Kit

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Home Kit

Real Madrid 2010/2011 Home Kit

Mesut Ozil signs for Real Madrid (Photo Gallery)

21 years old Turkish footballer Mesut Özil signs for Real Madrid for 6 years.

During the presentation he said he was too happy to be Real Madrid the world best club.

"ı didn't know anything about my transfer up to yesterday but now i am so happy that the transfer ended with a happy ending."

He said it is not true that he would almost sign for Barcelona."Real Madrid was my only option because I wanted to play with the best ones.For me the best is Mourinho,I talked him and he persuaded me to come to Real Madrid."

Real Madrid still wants Mesut Ozil

Werder Bremen midfielder Mesut Oezil has once more come to the attention of Real Madrid after reports, denied by all involved in Germany, that Barcelona had agreed a fee.

Madrid coach Jose Mourinho, a keen admirer of Oezil, will try to capture the midfielder once more if a third striker can't be added to his ranks. The coach wants to allow more versatility for the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo to play up top if needed, according to Marca.

Unable to find a young striker good enough and at the right price, Oezil will be able to cover a wide range of positions across the midfield which Mou has taken note of.

The problem remains in coming up with a fee tempting enough for Bundesliga side Werder, a figure Marca have touted at around €25 million. This would put off most clubs for any player with one year left on their contract, unless there is further interest from Barcelona.

Both Mourinho and Pep Guardiola will unquestionably not want the other to have such a versatile asset, which could leave Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United the chance to trump the Spaniards with a bid neither can afford to match.

Oezil himself has been calm over the situation, stating he will remain at Werder Bremen, but next year's promise of a lottery for the player's service could force the hand of the most interested party before September.

Real Madrid on the way to America

Real Madrid are en route to Los Angeles, where they will stay until 7 August

Realmadrid.com

Real Madrid are planebound for Los Angeles, where they will land at approximately 1:20 am CET on Thursday. The team will stay at the Beverly Hills Hotel located on Sunset Boulevard.

The 18 players who are making the trip will begin two-a-day workouts on Thursday on the UCLA campus. The US tour includes a match against Club America in San Francisco on 4 August followed by a game against the LA Galaxy in the Rose Bowl on 8 August. The team will then travel to Germany, where on 13 August they will play against Bayern Munich in a match in honor of club President of Honor Franz Beckenbauer. The tour wraps up on 17 August with a game in Belgium against Standard Liege. Real Madrid will then return to Spain where they will play against Hercules in Alicante and the Santiago Bernabeu Trophy.

US & EUROPEAN TOUR
DATE	MATCH	VENUE
04/08	Club America - Real Madrid	Candlestick Park (San Francisco)
07/08	Los Angeles Galaxy - Real Madrid	Rose Bowl (Los Angeles)
13/08	Bayern Munich - Real Madrid	Allianz Arena (Munich)
17/08	Standard Liege- Real Madrid	Stade de Sclessin (Liege)

Players traveling to US: Dudek, Adan, Pepe, Marcelo, Garay, Drenthe, Diarra, Lass, Granero, Gago, Pedro Leon, Cristiano Ronaldo, Benzema. Youth teamers: Nacho Fernandez, Marcos Tebar, Alex Fernandez, Juanfran, Alvaro Morata. Other World Cup and Under-19 internationals will steadily rejoin team over the next few days.

Raul signs Schalke 04 -- Good bye el capitano

Raul Gonzalez Blanco Completes Move to Schalke 04

Real Madrid idol Raul Gonzalez Blanco has been presented as a player for German side FC Schalke 04. The forward has been confirmed to wear his favoured number seven shirt for the upcoming Bundesliga season. The all-time leading scorer at the Bernebau, Raul was welcomed at the Veltins Arena after having signed a two-year contract with his new club.

Schalke midfielder Hao Junmin has reportedly passed up the number seven shirt for the upcoming season, stating it would be an honour to allow the former Madrid captain to wear the number of his choosing. According to reports, the Chinese international will now play wearing the number eight shirt.

As 33 year-old Raul was unveiled as a Schalke player, he showed his delight at moving to last season’s Bundesliga runners-up. He said: "For me this is a very special day, as I'm leaving after 16 years at (Real Madrid). Now I have the desire to take on a new challenge. I come to a very competitive club that is playing in the Champions League and that is fighting for the Bundesliga. Schalke and their coach have shown their confidence in me and from the beginning showed great interest in making this a reality. This is an important challenge. I hope that the fans enjoy the team as well as me, and that we accomplish our goals that we have set for ourselves at the beginning of the season."

The Miners’ Club

Raul posed with two miners and a block of coal, as his new side, located near the mining area of Ruhrgebiet, is known as “The Miners’ Club." He revealed to reporters that he had decided on Schalke as his destination due to the interest the club had shown in him and because they had "what I want in terms of level of competition."

The former Spain international said he is "excited to play and work very hard. I hope that these two years are a marvellous experience. I am sure that everything is going to go very well. I want to score goals, but the most important thing is the team, not the personal objectives. It has been that way for me for the past 16 years."

At Schalke, Raul has been reunited with former Madrid teammate Christoph Metzelder. The 29 year-old German central defender moved to the Bundesliga side on a free transfer earlier this summer. Raul, also known as El Siete (The Seven, after his iconic shirt number), also commented on the possibility of meeting his former club in the Champions League. While he said there “is no clause in my contract that impedes me from playing against Madrid," he conceded that such an event would be “a very special one."

‘Great news’

Schalke coach Felix Magath told the club’s official website: “It's great news for FC Schalke 04, I am pleased that we have succeeded in signing such an exceptional footballer and world-class striker switching to the Bundesliga for Schalke 04. He will be an inspiration. His qualities will help us. His commitment is a crucial step in our efforts to strengthen the squad for future tasks, and to restructure. I look forward to working with this good professional."

The player had been with Real Madrid since joining their youth set-up in 1992. His 323 goals in 741 games aided his team to three UEFA Champions League titles and six La Liga Championships. He is also his country’s all-time highest scorer with 44 goals in 102 games for Spain.

The presentation had initially been set to take place behind closed doors, but due to the enormous press attention given to the Madrid legend’s arrival, Schalke fans were allowed access to cheer the arrival of "El Angel del Madrid."

Mourinho confirms Khedira 's buyout clause

Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho has confirmed that the club are looking to sign Stuttgart midfielder Sami Khedira.

The 23-year-old midfielder was one of the stars of the World Cup as Germany finished third, falling at the semi-final hurdle to eventual champions Spain. Now he has been identified as a key target for Mourinho, who says he wishes to sign one midfielder and one defender to add to the current squad.

It has been suggested that Khedira's buyout clause sits at a mere €10 million, which certainly wouldn't stretch Madrid's purse. "We're not going to be kings of the [transfer] market. I'll bet on the usual philosophy of Madrid, signing players with projection, with more room for learning.

We signed [Angel] Di Maria, who it's true that he was expensive [€30 million], but he has great potential, and we go for [Sami] Khedira, with a huge room for improvement. It is a market direction that I love," the Special One is quoted as saying by AS.

"We need a defender and a midfielder, but with balance and without dramatics. There is a great base from last season and that will give competition to the group. It is complicated, because when Madrid is interested in a player prices soar so astronomically."

Madrid have also captured Pedro Leon from Getafe, which suggests that if Khedira signs, a defender will be the final signing of the summer for los Merengues.

Mourinho's first training as Real Madrid coach

Real Madrid new coach Jose Mourinho made his first training as Real Madrid coach.
Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho and his players took the training pitch 20 minutes earlier than scheduled today in Los Blancos' first training session of the pre-season, marking the beginning of the Mourinho era at the Bernabeu.

The Blancos squad, consisiting of eight youth team players along with the 10 first team players who did not take part in this summer's World Cup, took to the pitch at 9:10 rather than the scheduled 9:30 training session time and after a brief chat with the new Portuguese signal caller, began a rigorous first training session of the day, which lasted for an hour and 40 minutes.

The ball was included in many of the training exercises, including those which called for a large amount of physical exertion, and Mourinho also had his players fitted with heart-rate monitors to observe their individual effort.

The second training session of the day is to take place this afternoon after the Blancos players and coaching staff dine together at the Mirasierra Suites hotel for lunch.