Sergio Ramos to Manchester United: Real Madrid president Florentino Perez insists defender 'will not leave' despite United interest

United have already seen a bid for Ramos rejected by the club but are refusing to sell David De gea unless they get their man

Real Madrid owner Florentino Perez alongside Sergio Ramos (Getty Images)

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has insisted that Sergio Ramos cannot be sold despite interest coming from Manchester United.

Having completed the signings of Bastian Schweinsteiger and Morgan Schneiderlin, United have added four players to their squad this summer and all signs suggest that Louis van Gaal will not stop there.

With United already seeing one bid for Ramos rejected by Real, the club are considering a second offer, but insist that they will not sell Real their top summer target of David De Gea if they are not going to receive Ramos in return – a situation that has seen the two clubs reach a stalemate in negotiations.

Real president Perez was on hand on Monday to give a press conference alongside one player who is leaving the club in legendary goalkeeper Iker Casillas. Much has been made of his acrimonious departure, with fans not getting the chance to say goodbye and the goalkeeper’s parents attacking Perez for forcing their son out of the club – something that Casillas’ mother Maria del Carmen Fernandez Gonzalez has since apologised for after labelling Porto a third-tier club ahead of the 34-year-old’s transfer there.

A day after Casillas confirmed he was leaving in a small press conference though, he appeared alongside Perez in the presidential box at the Santiago Bernabeu to allow the fans to say farewell.

However, Perez chose the moment to make it undoubtedly clear that Ramos is not for sale this summer even if he wants to leave the club.

“There are players on contract that the club does not want to let go and are not going to leave,” Perez said.

"Raúl also thought as Casillas has, that he could continue his career far away from Real Madrid. Iker has earned himself the right to ask for an exit from the club.”

Sergio Ramos has gone on Real's pre-season tour of Australia (twitter.com/realmadrid)

United meanwhile have taken De Gea on their pre-season tour of the United States where they will play four matches to prepare for the new Premier League season – including games with Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain.

It means that any move to Real is a long way from being completed for De Gea, with Real jetting to the other side of the world for their tour of Australia last weekend. It has also been reported that Ramos will step up from his role as vice-captain to fill Casillas’s boots and take on the armband in what would be another major blow for United’s hopes of signing the 2010 World Cup winner.