Chelsea defender Ashley Cole is still favourite to make Real Madrid his next club should he quit the Blues, but a deal looks unlikely after Jose Mourinho ruled out a bid for the full-back

Cole had recently held talks with Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti where he expressed a desire to quit the Premier League champions, only for Ancelotti to tell the England international he would not be put up for sale ahead of the new season getting underway next weekend.

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Real Madrid boss Mourinho had been keen on bringing Cole to the Bernabeu but has now ruled out making a move for the former Arsenal full-back.

Mourinho told the Sunday Times: "Carlo Ancelotti was very, very clear and that's the best way in football.

"He killed the story by saying, 'No money can buy Ashley Cole, Ashley Cole needs to stay'.

"I think Ashley thought about leaving for personal and professional reasons. We thought about him because he's a good player who I enjoyed working with.

"But when a coach says no, it's no, and we have to accept that."

As of Sunday afternoon, Cole was still 4/6 with Sky Bet (£5 no deposit free bet) to join Real Madrid before the transfer window closes on September 1st, although it now looks like a deal is extremely unlikely.

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