Manchester United and Real Madrid tensions continue in Los Angeles
The ongoing tensions between Manchester United and Real Madrid have flared up ahead of two meetings between the rivals this summer.
It’s understood there have been clashes in the build up to their tours of America, with both clubs competing for hotels and training facilities here in Los Angeles.
And Jose Mourinho appears to have won one battle - with United securing their preferred choices of the Montage and Beverly Wilshire hotels, where they have stayed on previous visits to LA.
Back-to-back Champions League winners Real have based their headquarters at the famed Beverly Hills Hotel.
Organisers of the International Champions Cup have also had to mediate regarding training plans for United and Real at UCLA.
Mourinho’s squad are carrying out their preparations just yards away from Zinedine Zidane’s on the sprawling campus.
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Relations between the clubs have grown increasingly tense - dating back to Real’s attempts to sign Cristiano Ronaldo in the summer of 2008.
Sir Alex Ferguson famously claimed he wouldn’t sell them 'a virus' - but Ronaldo ultimately headed to the Bernabeu the following summer in a world-record £80m deal.
More recently United have been angered by Real’s plans to lure David de Gea away from Old Trafford, which resulted in a last minute breakdown of the goalkeeper’s proposed move in 2015.
That led to a war of words over who was to blame for the late administrative hitch.
Real didn’t welcome United’s attempts to sign Sergio Ramos that same summer, while the feeling inside Old Trafford was that they’d been used in the Spanish defender’s attempts to secure a bumper new contract.
Mourinho is training his squad within yards of his former club Real
Most recently the clubs have been negotiating over the signing of Alvaro Morata.
Real believed they could force United to pay their £79m valuation for a player who wasn’t even a regular starter for Zidane’s side last season.
United maintained negotiations, while putting together the £75m deal for their top target Romelu Lukaku, who completed his move from Everton on Monday.
