​Real Madrid defender Fabio Coentrao has reportedly informed the club of his desire to leave the Spanish capital and return to Benfica.





According to Portuguese sports daily ​‘A Bola’, Coentrao is looking for a move to his former club Benfica, but new manager Rafa Benitez continues to rely on the player as an emergency alternative to Marcelo, who has firmly established himself as the first-choice at the Bernabeu.













Real Madrid have grown impatient with Coentrao's persistent injury woes, but require his availability when Marcelo is ruled out himself. Regardless, the feeling is that Coentrao is less than happy at the club and would like to return home at some point in his career.





The 27-year-old has failed to live up to the £21m transfer fee Real Madrid paid for when he made the move from Benfica in the summer of 2011 and continues to prevent Real Madrid from signing his replacement. However, Marca reported on Saturday that Coentrao had a clear intention to stay at Madrid and fight for his place.





Coentrão's intention is clear; he wants to stay at Real Madrid, recover and fight for a starting spot. [marca] pic.twitter.com/yaFZlIj2vj — SB (@Realmadridplace) August 8, 2015





Coentrao continues to train apart from the team, as a recent injury hasn’t allowed him to train at full pace, but could be sold within the next several weeks if Benfica are willing to pay a partial amount of the fee, allowing Real Madrid to cover some of their investment.





The left-back, whose proposed move to Manchester United in 2013 fell through because the paperwork was not completed in time for the transfer deadline.