Its a joke.. "We're tidying up Jose Mourinho mess - Benitez's wife"

Montserrat Seara has talked up her husband's passion for football and what made some Liverpool fans so incensed at his approach

Rafa Benitez has joined Real Madrid to tidy up another mess of Jose Mourinho's making, according to the Spanish coach's wife.

The former Napoli boss, who replaced Carlo Ancelotti at the Santiago Bernabeu earlier this summer, has now succeeded Mourinho at three different clubs, having previously taken charge at Inter and Chelsea.

And Montserrat Seara believes it seems almost fated that Benitez should continue to join clubs in the Portuguese coach's wake.

"We tidy up his messes," she joked, speaking to La Region. "If you think about it, of course you end up crossing paths. There are only a few world-class clubs out there."

Seara, a law professor from the northern region of Galicia, says her husband's passion for the game remains unabated despite the difficult circumstances of his time with Napoli.

"On our first date, Rafa explained to me what a 4-4-2 was. He finds it hard to stay away from the game," she said. "The year we spent at home he helped coach the local school team. It was hilarious. He stood on the sidelines and shouted at them as if they were first division players, waving his arms about. He doesn't see football as work, it's his passion.

"It was hard to see each other over the winter in Napoli. There were no direct flights and it was complicated. Things will be much easier now in Madrid."

Seara also believes Benitez's infamous tendency to tinker with his starting line-ups left him hugely unpopular with a handful of fans by the end of his spell with Liverpool.

"Even I don't know them," she said of his tactics. "Sometimes I ask him, who's going to play? He says he doesn't know yet. They criticised him at Liverpool for constantly tweaking his starting XI. I thought his two best friends in England were going to kill him."

She does, however, believe Benitez has a long career in the game still to come.

"I don't know if he'll ever retire," she added. "All being well, he has 20 years of football left."

Benteke completes his transfer to Liverpool

Liverpool have completed the £32.5 million signing of Christian Benteke from Aston Villa.

Sources tell ESPN FC the Belgium international striker has signed a five-year contract with the club, which will see Liverpool pay £16 million up front with the remainder of the fee payable over the course of his contract.

Liverpool made their bid for Belgium international Benteke on Friday after confirming to Villa that they were prepared to meet the release clause in his contract.

A structure for payments was then agreed last weekend, allowing the Reds to enter talks with the 24-year-old over personal terms.

Manager Brendan Rodgers is a long-time admirer of the forward, who Villa bought from Belgian club Genk for £7 million in August 2012.

"I'm very happy to be here and I would like to thank the owners, Ian [Ayre, chief executive who pushed the deal through] and of course the manager for their massive effort to bring me here," the striker told liverpoolfc.com.

"I think it was the right club for me because I had a good chat with the manager and I wanted to be part of his project.

"I know Liverpool is a big story. They've won league titles and the Champions League five times and of course the UEFA Cup and a lot of trophies. I know it's a big club.

"I'm very happy to be part of the Liverpool family now and I will do everything to make them happy and work hard for them and my teammates."

Benteke will not meet most of his new teammates until they return after Friday's match against a Malaysia XI in Kuala Lumpur.

He already knows a couple of them -- goalkeeper Simon Mignolet and Divock Origi -- from the Belgian national team and believes the summer recruitment has given the Reds a chance of winning silverware.

"I think there are quality players, a lot of good players with big names of course," he added.

"I'm happy to be part of this team and will [try] to help this team reach its goals.

"I want to be the best and I want to reach the best of myself.

"I came here to win trophies. I came here to reach some great goals with the team."

Benteke missed the 2014 World Cup in Brazil with an Achilles injury, and after returning to fitness, had to wait until December to score his first Premier League goal of last season.

He hit form over the closing three months of the campaign, though, scoring 12 goals in his final 13 matches for Villa as they avoided relegation and reached the FA Cup final.

LVG still hopes for De Gea

The manager hopes David De Gea can play against Barcelona on Saturday. "He was still injured tonight." #MUtour


Manchester United beat San Jose Earthquakes 3-1 on their U.S. preseason tour, with Memphis Depay getting off the mark. But one key player still isn't ready for Louis van Gaal...

Manchester United legend tips Arsenal title charge if ‘top’ player is signed

Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand has tipped us to challenge for the Premier League if we manage to sign Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema.

While addressing all the latest rumours through his Instagram page, Ferdinand holds Benzema in high regard and believes that we’ll “go close” if we land the Frenchman.

According to the latest reports, Arsene Wenger has already contacted Benzema’s representatives to sound out a potential move and inform them of our interest to sign the 27-year-old (via the Metro).

Olivier Giroud has led the line admirably over the past few years but has fallen short of spearheading a realistic title challenge and his limitations are obvious. 

Benzema is one of the most complete strikers in the world and is able to finish off chances while also fashioning opportunities for himself.

Chelsea increase their offer for Stones; Man Utd closer for Romero

TOP STORY: Chelsea up their Stones bid

Jose Mourinho is not one to be put off easily. Following Everton's rejection of a £20 million bid from Chelsea for defender John Stones earlier in the week, the Mail says that Jose's men are set to return to Merseyside with an improved offer of £26 million.

Which, of course, will go down like a tonne of bricks at Goodison Park, where Everton manager Roberto Martinez is trying desperately to quash any talk of a potential move away for the 21-year-old centre-back.

Hopefully, Martinez isn't fond of reading the papers then, because pretty much every outlet is running an increased bid story. The Guardian says that Chelsea may be willing to pay £30 million to get their man, while the Telegraph puts the figure at a rather robust £34 million.

Romero deal nearly done?

The Manchester Evening News says that Man United are on the brink of signing Victor Valdes' replacement despite the fact that the former Barcelona keeper is still at the club!

Manager Louis van Gaal dropped the bombshell last week that Valdes' time at Old Trafford is most likely coming to an end, branding him unprofessional for refusing to play for United's reserves last season.

Chief in line to replace the Spaniard is Argentina custodian Sergio Romero, who worked under LVG at AZ Alkmaar and is currently a free agent.

With all of the grandiose spending going on at Old Trafford, signing a 28-year-old who has 62 caps for Argentina on a free could represent somewhat of a coup for the Red Devils, and the MEN says that United are homing in on their man.

What effect will Romero's signing will have on the David De Gea saga remains to be seen.

Mathieu bidding adieu

If Fenerbahce are shaping up as the "Turkish Manchester United" following the recruitment of Old Trafford old boys Nani and Robin van Persie, then Istanbul rivals Galatasaray might now become known as the Gunners!

According to the London Evening Standard, Mathieu Flamini is set to follow in the footsteps of former Arsenal front man Lukas Podolski and join the reigning champions of Turkey.

Flamini, 31, has fallen down the pecking order at the Emirates after the emergence of Francis Coquelin and didn't make a single Premier League start in 2015.

A transfer fee of £2.8 million is being bandied about, which should please Arsene Wenger after he missed out on any compensation last time Flamini left the club.

Arsenal and Manchester United going head-to-head in a genuine rivalry? It feels like 2003 again! Here's hoping Gala sign Martin Keown.