Real Madrid's Italian defender Fabio Cannavaro said on Monday that he wanted to extend his current contract with Real Madrid for a further year.

Real Madrid's Fabio Cannavaro (2nd R) jogs with his team mates during a training session at Petrovskiy stadium in St. Petersburg September 29, 2008.  [Xinhua/Reuters]

Cannavaro, who is 35 years old, joined Real Madrid from Juventus following the 2006 World Cup finals. He currently has a deal that expires at the end of June 2009.

Everything pointed to that being the moment for him to leave the club after three seasons. However, his excellent form has led to coach Bernd Schuster reportedly asking the Real Madrid President Ramon Calderon to add another season onto Cannavaro's deal and the Italian is delighted.

"I am very calm about things, and waiting to be able to speak to the club about my future so we can resolve it all before we get to the end of the season," Cannavaro told sports paper Diario AS on Monday.

The Italian missed last summer's European Championships with an ankle injury that required an operation. That saw him miss the pre-season. However, as soon as he was fully fit, Schuster put him straight back into the Madrid starting 11.

"Everyone knows that I want to extend my contract with Real Madrid. I don't want to leave here because I am very happy here with this team and my family are happy at Madrid," said Cannavaro, who saw no problem with his age.

"I am first choice at Real Madrid and also with the Italian national team and that is not easy. I know I have to look after myself well, but I am in great form and I have a lot of confidence in myself."

"I feel that I have the support of the technical staff and also of my team-mates," he concluded.

(Xinhua News Agency October 14, 2008)