Marcelo Says He's Confused by Juventus Transfer Links, Happy at Real Madrid

Real Madrid left-back Marcelo has said he is unsure where speculation linking him with a move to Juventus has emerged from. 

Following the sale of Cristiano Ronaldo from the European champions to the Italian champions, Marcelo has been tipped to follow his former Los Blancos team-mate. It was reported by Sergio Santos Chozas of AS that Ronaldo was pushing Juventus to sign the defender, with the pair said to share a "great friendship."

Marcelo dismissed the rumours, while admitting he does have an admiration for the Turin giants, per Esporte Interativo (h/t AS):

"I'd also like to know where are these rumours coming from because it's not normal. It's funny because they [the press] make pictures with a Juve shirt.

"Juve is a splendid team since the times of [Pavel] Nedved. I once played against them, and he was there. It was amazing. I changed shirts with him.

"But I'm from Real Madrid. I have a contract with Real Madrid and the things that are being published, I don't know what they are [coming from], you don't know, many people don't know either and, honestly, I'm a sincere man, you know it. If there was anything to be told, I'd say it—but nothing."

In the same interview (h/t Jaime Candill of AS), Marcelo added that Ronaldo told him he would be ending his nine-year stay at Real Madrid in training ahead of the 2017-18 UEFA Champions League final, which Madrid won 3-1 against Liverpool.

Recent events are unlikely to quell the rumours, though, even after this interview with Marcelo. That's because he faces a battle for his first-team place under manager Santiago Solari, with Sergio Reguilon doing a fine job at left-back.

Spanish football journalist David Cartlidge praised the performance of the young defender in Real's recent 3-1 win at rivals Atletico Madrid:

With the UEFA Champions League knockout stages starting again this week—Madrid are up against Ajax on Wednesday—it will be intriguing to see whether or not Solari recalls Marcelo to the XI.

After all, in big matches the Brazilian has raised his game frequently for Madrid. The left-back has provided such a potent attacking threat down the years; last term he netted goals in the semi-final and quarter-final of the competition against Bayern Munich and Juventus, respectively.

In the previous final he was able to make his mark too:

Marcelo joined Real Madrid in 2007, and in those 12 years he has been one of the side's most dependable performers.

However, as he moves towards the twilight of his career it would be no surprise if there was a desire in him to take on a fresh challenge, especially given the extraordinary amount he's already accomplished at the Santiago Bernabeu.