The Spaniard, who has been at the Reds' Helm for four and a half years, assured in the same breath that he has no intention of joining the Spanish giants in the meantime.

"I am not thinking about leaving and I hope to be here for a long time but of course Real Madrid would be the perfect ending to anyone's career," he told The Guardian.

"But my career is not at an end yet."

Benitez coached several youth teams at Real a while back, and apparently the 48-year-old is planning to get back to Los Merengues at some point in the future.

Not Secure

Benitez's current contract with Liverpool will run out in 2010, and the former Valencia coach said he wants to wrap up a new deal with the club as soon as possible.

"Anyone that has just a year left on his contract does not have anything at all and I have only got a year and a half left," he stated.

"When people, either within the club or from outside it, realize that the manager only has that much time left then he is dead.

"I've got 10 or 12 assistants whose contracts are up in June. How can a manager lead a project properly if the continuity of his staff is not secure for two or three years?"

Benitez strenuously denied asking for greater control over transfers as was lately reported.

"I would like to clear one thing up - I never asked for complete control," he explained.

"I did, however, ask for the power to be able to make my own decisions and run the team the way I see fit. That is not the same thing."