Xabi has confessed that he is attracted to Florentino Perez’s grand designs of taking Los Blancos back to the summit of the football world.

Real Madrid have spent the last few weeks haggling with Liverpool to take Xabi Alonso to the Santiago Bernabeu.

The Spanish giants are hell-bent on acquiring the Spanish international, but the Merseysiders have stubbornly refused to lower their asking price as the two clubs continue to wrangle back and forth.

The midfielder himself has so far refused to demand an unceremonious departure from Anfield, but he did admit that he is particularly interested in Florentino Perez’s Galacticos reincarnation.

“It’s always a great feeling when Madrid want you, especially considering the phase of the career I am in now,” he told AS in a brief interview prior to his trip to Vienna to join up with the rest of the Reds squad for pre-season preparations.

“But at this point, as I have always said, whether or not that can happen is not up to me. It’s a matter that involves three parties, including myself.

“I do not like to force the issue. I prefer to talk.

“Madrid’s project is certainly impressive. But beyond that, I can’t tell you anything else.”

Xabi reaffirmed that he intends to hold discussions with Rafael Benitez to persuade the gaffer to let him go.

“I will talk to him, sure, but the first thing to do when I arrive [in Austria] is to greet him,” he professed.

“But I imagine that in the next few days, there will be time for all that, even though in reality, there’s nothing in particular to talk to Rafa about. It’s the clubs who have to negotiate to reach an agreement.”

And when he was asked why the Reds had declined to accept Madrid’s prior bid of €27 million, Xabi replied, “I am not the man who can answer these questions.

“The truth is that I cannot say much, because every little thing can be misinterpreted. And I do not know how things will turn out either because I am not a fortune teller.”