Iker Casillas Transfer to Arsenal, Manchester City: Keeper is 'First Choice' Says Carlo Ancelotti

Carlo Ancelotti has claimed that both Diego Lopez and Iker Casillas are "number one" keepers for Real Madrid.

Casillas has long been in the transfer rumor mill due to his diminished playing time for Real Madrid. The superstar was overlooked by Jose Mourinho in 2012-13 in favor of Lopez but many thought that Casillas would get more playing time under new coach Ancelotti. That has been far from the case.

In fact, Casillas has not played a single minute in the Spanish League in 2013-14 and has been limited to playing in the Copa del Rey and Champions League.

Many thought that the superstar keeper would seek greener pastures but it seems that the birth of his son has deterred the transfer rumors. Casillas has not addressed the issue at all since the birth of his son.

The keeper recently broke his own record for most minutes without having conceded a goal as Madrid took down Espanyol 1-0 in the Copa del Rey quarterfinal. His new record, which stands at 592 minutes, elicited the response from Ancelotti in which he calls Casillas and Lopez his first-choice keepers.

"I have to congratulate him because he is playing brilliantly at the moment. He deserves his record and he is really helping the team," Ancelotti said, according to Goal.com. "He made a fantastic save [to deny Cordoba]. In every game, he is playing well. At the moment, the two goalkeepers are playing alternate matches and so Iker is as much our first choice as Diego Lopez."

There is still time for Casillas to leave Madrid as he has reportedly drawn interest from Arsenal and Manchester City.