Tite denies contact with Real Madrid

Brazil head coach Tite has strongly denied contact with Real Madrid over taking the reins at the Santiago Bernabeu following Zinedine Zidane’s shock departure.

Tite’s contract with the Selecao runs out at the end of the World Cup and he has pledged to wait until the end of the tournament before deciding on his future.

Brazilian newspaper O Globo reported the 57-year-old is on Madrid’s wishlist, with his relationship with Neymar claimed to be a factor.

But Tite shut down those rumours, insisting he is respectful of his current team as he focuses on Brazil’s final preparations for Russia 2018.

“When it is an opinion, it deserves my respect. When it is put in quotation marks, it is a lie; it is a disrespectful and lying attitude. That’s my word,” he told a pre-match news conference ahead of Sunday’s friendly against Austria.

“I did not get in touch with anyone. Gilmar Veloz [Tite’s agent], my friend, did not speak to anyone.

“I have a great respect for where I am. I know the responsibilities and the goals I have here.”

Tite named Neymar in his XI to face Austria, the Paris Saint-Germain’s superstar’s first start since suffering a broken metatarsal at the end of February.