Real Madrid Transfer News: Latest on Sergio Ramos and David De Gea Rumours

Real Madrid are reportedly open to the possibility of centre-back Sergio Ramos departing the Bernabeu for Manchester United, but they will demand huge money from the Red Devils in return.

Indeed, Los Blancos have apparently slapped a €90 million (£64 million) price tag on the Spaniard, potentially making him the world's most expensive centre-back, per AS' Marco Ruiz.

According to Ruiz, Ramos now wants out of Real after the club failed to offer him an improved contract. But despite United tabling an opening offer of €50 million (£35.5 million), Madrid will not accept a bid below their asking price.

The 29-year-old Ramos still has two years left to run on his current contract, thus Real are in a decent position when it comes to bargaining.

Despite being prepared to sell him, as is the player's wish, Marca reports that club president Florentino Perez has now spoken to Ramos and urged him reconsider his position. 

Ramos' relationship with Real certainly seems to have deteriorated in the last week, per the Guardian's Sid Lowe. It remains to be seen whether it can be repaired.

The price tag placed on him seems prohibitively high, and if Ramos is to depart for Old Trafford, it will surely have to be reduced.

On the other hand, if he is to stay at Real, he is likely to demand a much improved contract, and perhaps that has been his game all along, per Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe:

The 29-year-old has been with Los Blancos for 10 years, is vice-captain and has won three La Liga titles and a Champions League with the Spanish giants.

Although he would be a great signing for United who need added strength in the centre of defence, he is surely not worth €90 million—the current world record for a centre-back is the £43.5 million paid by Paris Saint-Germain for David Luiz, per Transfermarkt.

The rumours of Ramos being used by Real as a bargaining chip in their pursuit of United's goalkeeper David De Gea have been quashed, with Ruiz suggesting the two deals will not be linked, should they go through.

In fact, Los Blancos have been dealt something of a blow in their pursuit of De Gea, with United now only prepared to accept a world-record transfer fee for the Spaniard, per the Manchester Evening News' Stuart Mathieson.

That would require Real to eclipse the £32.6 million Juventus paid Parma for Italian shot-stopper Gianluigi Buffon's in 2001.

While De Gea is arguably worth that—his performances last season were largely responsible for United's top-four finish in the Premier League—he only has one year left on his contract at Old Trafford.

However, according to Mathieson, United are prepared to risk losing 24-year-old De Gea for free next summer, rather than selling him cheap to Real now. Indeed, if he stays on for another season, they could even persuade him to continue, per the Manchester Evening News' Rob Dawson:

This could cause a problem for Madrid, with Iker Casillas no longer performing to a high enough standard, and likely to depart the Bernabeu this summer, per Bleacher Report's Jonathan Johnson:

Real need to bring in a top-class goalkeeper if they are to contend for La Liga and the Champions League again next season. If they are denied De Gea, they will have to look elsewhere.

Los Blancos and United seem to be locked in a stalemate over both Ramos and De Gea at the moment, and it remains to be seen how the two ongoing sagas will be resolved. It is surely set to be a drawn-out process in both cases.