On Thursday, Rafa Benitez announced that he would be coaching his last game for Italian club Napoli on Sunday against Lazio.

"I want to thank the club, it's president and the fans for what you have done for me. I want to say goodbye to this club and I want to end my cycle here with a victory and a place in the qualifying round of the Champions League," Benitez said in a press conference with Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis.

But Benitez, who spent the past two years with the club, may not be unemployed for much too longer. It has been widely expected that will soon be named as manager for Real Madrid, which has said it plans to name Carlo Ancelotti's replacement next week.

Benitez began his coaching career with Real Madrid's B team, and would be making a return to Spain after leaving Valencia in 2004 should he be named the Los Blanco's next coach.

He has been one of the biggest coaching names in football for the better part of the past decade, having led Valencia to two Primera Division titles, as well as back-to-back appearances in the Champions League final as well as a UEFA Cup championship.

 Another bonus of having Benitez as Madrid's next manager would be his close ties to coveted Raheem Sterling. As noted by The Mirror, the former Liverpool manager played a key role in persuading Sterling to move to Merseyside back in 2010.

The 20-year-old Sterling, who is being eyed by Manchester City, Chelsea, and Arsenal, recently turned down a 90,000-pound-a-week contract offer from Anfield.

Should these prospected deals push through, that would make Madrid an even tougher squad than it already is with reports surfacing that the Spanish giants are also getting confident that they will be able to sign Manchester United keeper David De Gea this summer.