Before even having the chance to take charge of his first training session, Rafa Benitez is already getting a glimpse of exactly what his new position as manager of Real Madrid entails.

Over the last couple of weeks Benitez has observed sensational newspaper headlines and endless TV and radio debates over the futures of three of his most high-profile players: Sergio Ramos, Cristiano Ronaldo and Iker Casillas.

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The biggest story is the saga of Ramos’ contract dispute, which has now entered into a temporary cooling-off period while the central defender enjoys his summer vacation in California.

In this case, as with any other transfer story, with silly season in full effect it is difficult to differentiate fact from fiction, as agents, players, managers and directors are all perfectly happy further their personal causes by exploiting the hunger of fans and the media for any information.

Despite the saturation coverage given to possible moves for star players, though, the most important conversations take place strictly in private, hidden away from the prying eyes of the outside world. The media is used primarily for tactical purposes – to plant seeds, establish strategic positions and indirectly allow other protagonists to guess what you are thinking without speaking to them directly. But when the shadow-boxing stops and the relevant parties really get down to business, a veil of secrecy is invariably thrown and the media, however much confidence some headlines attempt to express, is kept uninformed until the necessary deals are struck.

All of this means that the only honest answer anyone – probably even the player himself – could provide to the question of whether Sergio Ramos will really leave Real Madrid is a tentative, unexciting and inconclusive: I don’t know.

It is certainly a possibility, however, because the fact that Ramos has failed to deny the rumours make it clear that he is unhappy with Perez’s failure to increase his wages from the (relatively) modest €6 million (Dh24.6m) he currently annually takes home.
If Ramos truly does fancy a new challenge, Manchester United are in the strongest position to land his services due to their ongoing negotiations with Madrid over goalkeeper David De Gea.

But other clubs, notably Manchester City, will doubtless also be monitoring the situation with great interest and it is far from guaranteed that, if he does leave the Bernabeu, Ramos’ next destination would be Old Trafford.

It is far from guaranteed that, if he does leave the Bernabeu, Ramos’ next destination would be Old Trafford

United might have struck first and be currently leading the race, but there could well other entrants who end up overtaking them.
Then again, there is every chance that Ramos has no intention whatsoever of leaving the club he has served for 10 years and is simply using the threat of a departure to force Perez into action on the new deal he has been waiting for.

With the future of Casillas also still uncertain and Ronaldo forced to deny rumours that he is considering a mega-money move to PSG, another summer of uncertainty lies in store for Real Madrid.

And if you think it’s frustrating for fans, eagerly awaiting developments and not knowing which headlines to believe, just imagine how difficult the situation is for one man who is both in the middle and on the fringes of the summer panto but with little opportunity to influence any of the outcomes.

Welcome to Madrid, Rafa.