The 34-year-old, who arrived in Gelsenkirchen last summer from Real Madrid on a two-year contract, has been linked with a move away from the Bundesliga outfit with the likes of Paris St Germain and Besiktas reportedly interested.

Blackburn also had an inquiry about the prolific forward rebuffed this week by Schalke, whose general manager Horst Heldt said Raul had told them he wanted to remain at the Veltins-Arena.

Raul now looks set to stay in Germany, with his agent Gines Carvajal telling Spanish newspaper AS: "Raul will play for Schalke this season, I'm sure. There isn't any other alternative for him and neither does he want to leave, so it's best for everyone is to stop talking about this."

He added: "There is no offer from Besiktas, nor from Paris St Germain. Last season we had many...from Besiktas and teams in America, Asia and Europe. But Raul chose the Bundesliga because he saw it as the best possible step in his career.

"Teams like Besiktas and Galatasaray are very big. Raul has played many Champions League games in Turkey and he knows how passionate the fans are there, but right now he doesn't see it as a viable option."

Carvajal also played down speculation of a strained relationship between Raul and new Schalke coach Ralf Rangnick, who replaced Felix Magath in March.

"Everything has been greatly exaggerated. It's possible that he doesn't have the same chemistry with him as with Magath, who is the person who brought him at the start, but Raul only has respect for Rangnick," said Carvajal.