Raul not ready for Madrid return

Real Madrid great Raul said a return to the Spanish capital is not in his “short-term plans” as he prepares for retirement.

Raul announced almost a fortnight ago that he will retire from football after completing the current NASL season with New York Cosmos.

The 38-year-old is set to have plenty of time on his hands but the former Spain international intends to remain in New York for the time being.

A return to Madrid – where he became the club’s all-time recorder goal-scorer with 323 goals between 1994 and 2010 only to be surpassed by Cristiano Ronaldo on October 17 – is not on the agenda.

“Right now, I will continue to live here in New York. I know that I will go back to Madrid one day, but that is not in my short-term plans”, Raul said.

“For the moment, I will be here with my family and we’ll see if an interesting project turns up.”

Raul added: “I don’t feel like I am a coach, it’s not something I have thought too much about as far as the future is concerned.

“And besides, to become a coach, you need to study and train to get a licence and that’s a process I haven’t even started; if one day I do decide to go into coaching, I’d like to coach club that wins.”