Rafael Benitez "first choice" to manage Real Madrid

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez wants Spanish coach Rafael Benitez, currently at Napoli, to replace Italian Carlo Ancelotti on the bench at the Bernabeu.

A top Real Madrid official told dpa that Perez “has already made the decision of not keeping Ancelotti, and he wishes to hire Benitez,” with whom the Spanish giants have already made preliminary contact.

Benitez, 55, trained Real Madrid’s youth squads before moving on to the likes of Valencia, Liverpool, Inter Milan, Chelsea and Napoli, and his contract with the latter is set to expire at the end of the current season. Ancelotti is under contract for another year.

“Florentino Perez does not want to keep Ancelotti, and Benitez is his first choice,” the source said.

Formal negotiations have not been launched yet and, while Real Madrid know Benitez would be willing to join them in principle, they also know he will make two demands that might become major hurdles.

First, Benitez, who won the Champions League with Liverpool in 2005, would like a three-year contract, which in 12 years as president, Perez only ever granted to Portuguese Jose Mourinho.

Secondly, the coach would like to have the final say in player transfers, which he has always insisted on during his career but which clashes dramatically with Perez’s working methods.

The second factor already caused trouble for Benitez at Valencia and Chelsea, where he openly slammed club officials for hiring unapproved players.

Perez apparently intends to do without Ancelotti even though several heavyweights of the Real Madrid squad have expressed their support for the Italian in recent days.