Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema still out for Real Madrid
Friday 29 April 2016 13:47, UK
Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema will miss Real Madrid's league match on Saturday as they focus on recovering from injury to face Manchester City next week.
Real coach Zinedine Zidane confirmed his side will be without their two top scorers when they travel to play Real Sociedad on Saturday, just days before they host City in their Champions League semi-final second leg.
Zidane's side need a win to stay in La Liga's title race - they trail leaders Barcelona and second-placed Atletico Madrid by one point with three matches to go.
But both Ronaldo and Benzema are nursing injuries. Ronaldo missed the away leg at City and last weekend's league match at Rayo Vallecano, while Benzema came off early in both of those matches because of a hamstring injury.
"I am worried because each time you have a player injured it is difficult," Zidane said on Friday.
"Now the most important thing is that they completely recover because we cannot take risks with Cristiano and Karim."
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Zidane did not specify Ronaldo's injury, a subject of intense speculation in the Spanish media.
"I can't give any details because I am not a doctor," he said.
But Madrid did issue a medical report about Benzema, saying on Thursday that the France striker had hurt his right hamstring.
Benzema's league tally of 23 goals is his best since joining the club in 2009, while Ronaldo has 31 to pass the 30-goal mark in the Spanish league for the sixth straight season.
Their absence leaves Gareth Bale, who scored twice in last weekend's 3-2 win at Vallecano to reach 18 league goals, as Madrid's main focus in attack against an unpredictable Sociedad side.
Sociedad, who sit in 12th place, beat defending champions Barcelona 1-0 earlier this month to tighten up a title race that promises to go to the wire.
"We know that there are three games left in the league and that we cannot slip up," Zidane said. "Karim and Cristiano are not going to be with us, but the rest are ready."
Madrid's game comes before Atletico host Vallecano and Barcelona's late match at Real Betis, also on Saturday.
Real host City at the Bernabeu on Wednesday after the two sides drew 0-0 in the first leg of their semi-final at the Etihad.
Zidane said: "We know what we have to do. We know that only winning is good enough.
"We drew in the first leg and in the return leg we need to score in order to win.
"It will be a day all about the fans. I know that the fans have always been good to us, with all the players, and I think they will keep doing that, and even more so because we are one step away from the final and we'll need the fans, as always.
"I have no doubt that it will be a great night for the players because the fans will help a lot."
