Isco deals major blow to Manchester United and Arsenal as Real Madrid midfielder is 'very close' to new contract

After firing Madrid to Super Cup success, the Spain midfielder confirmed he has no plans to leave the Bernabeu despite interest from the Premier League

Isco has revealed he is 'very close' to extending his contract with Real Madrid (Getty)

After manufacturing the Uefa Super Cup defeat of Manchester United and playing a starring role in Real Madrid’s charge to the La Liga and Champions League double last season, Isco looks set to deal a major blow to a number of Premier League teams interested in him by signing a new contract.

The Spain international was instrumental in securing Real’s 2-1 victory over United in Skopje on Tuesday night as he scored the match-winner after linking up beautifully with Gareth Bale to slot the ball past his compatriot David De Gea.

The 25-year-old has long been linked with a move to the Premier League, given he struggled to cement a place in the Madrid starting line-up due to the presence of Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema, but in Bale’s injury-enforced lay-off over the first half of 2017 allowed Isco to take centre stage in Zinedine Zidane’s side.

The attacking midfielder went into the summer facing an uncertain future, with just 12 months remaining on his current contract, and it led fans of Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea to call on their clubs to launch an offer in the hope of signing the former Valencia midfielder.

Real were not interested in letting him leave though, with Isco very much a part of Zidane’s plans this season, and the player has now revealed he is poised to extend his contract and deliver a huge blow to any ambitions of signing him that may harbour in the Premier League.

“We're very close and it will be done soon,” Isco told reporters after the victory in Macedonia.

Isco’s rise to prominence appeared to threaten Bale’s place not just in the first team, but in the Real squad completely. The Wales international remains a transfer target for United, though manager Jose Mourinho confirmed after the defeat in Skopje that they will not pursue Bale anymore this summer after Zidane made it clear he remains a part of his Real juggernaut.

“What do you want me to say? I'm concentrating on my football, I'm concentrating on getting my fitness up, I'm happy I'm playing football, I'm winning trophies, so yeah, I don't want to move, there's not really much more I can say,” Bale said on Tuesday.


 Bale has no plans to leave Real Madrid 
 (Getty)

“The club hasn't said anything, we've spoke, they're happy with everything and, yeah, for me, I just want to concentrate now on getting fit, on getting ready for the new season and playing as well as I can.

“[The speculation] doesn't bother me at all. I really don't read it, obviously there's been a lot of it over the last few days that I get told about. It doesn't bother me, I've had it about 10, 11 years now so it's nothing new.”