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Cape Town - Real Madrid head coach Zinedine Zidane has played down reports linking the Spanish giants with Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas, saying a move for the Spain international would be 'complicated'.
The former Barcelona and Arsenal player's future has become the subject of widespread conjecture after he was left out of the starting line-up for Monday's 2-1 victory over West Ham United at Stamford Bridge.
And Real, who passed on the opportunity to challenge Manchester United for Paul Pogba's signature, have been tipped to offer the Spaniard an escape route from Stamford Bridge.
However, Zidane has poured cold water on such suggestions, saying he is already well stocked in the central midfield position.
"If you want to put another central midfielder into the mix then it becomes complicated. Cesc is a great player but it is not very straightforward," Zidane told reporters, following his side's 5-3 win over French outfit Reims in the Santiago Bernabeu trophy on Tuesday.
"I am going to end up with a squad where three or four players do not get selected.
"To therefore put another player in there makes it difficult."
He added: "Regardless of what happens, I hope to be here in a year's time and I'll say the same thing. I'm happy with the players I've got, these same players won the Champions League.
"What I want us to do is to work hard all year round, because you don't just win things because you're Real Madrid. You have to work and that's all I want from the players."
