Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed that Real Madrid superstar, Cristiano Ronaldo, will not travel with the team to Sociedad and be rested due to his knee problems.
Ancelotti, however, insists Ronaldo’s absence is not based on a serious injury but a pre-caution because the FIFA Ballon d’Or winner needs to rest after he already played 45 games (for club and country) this season.
Ronaldo had been substituted in the 79th minute in the Champions League game against Borussia Dortmund and recent reports indicate that the Portuguese is carrying a slight knee problem.
“Tomorrow Cristiano Ronaldo will rest as he is a bit tired and has a problem,” the Italian said.
“We prefer for him to stay here, work and be ready for next game. This is to avoid any regression in the coming games.
“On Tuesday Ronaldo will be fresher, he can recover better. He has played a lot of consecutive games. We just want him to rest.
Ancelotti confirmed that the decision was taken in agreement with Ronaldo, but the is yet to decide who will play on the left wing for the 29-year-old.
“I have spoken with Ronaldo, we decided together it was best to rest. It’s normal he wants to play all games, but there is no problem,” he added.
“We have options, I will decide tomorrow. Morata could play, we could change Isco’s position, or move the other forwards around.
“Bale is playing very well, very consistent, at the moment. He could change position with Cristiano missing tomorrow.”
Real Madrid face a difficult trip to fifth-placed Real Sociedad, who recently beat Barcelona at Anoeta, and Ancelotti knows his side needs to win to keep their La Liga title hopes alive.
“Tomorrow will be a tough game with intensity. We must be at 100 percent to win and play as a team. They are a good side,” Ancelotti added.
“Real Sociedad is complicated team, especially at home team. We need to play if right, to continue fighting for the league.
“If we won’t win tomorrow it will be more difficult in the league but we are thinking about (only about) winning.”
When asked about the recent transfer ban for their rivals, Barcelona, Ancelotti responded: “I prefer to talk about football.”
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