Guti ruled out of Madrid derby

Real Madrid will be without Guti for Saturday's derby showdown with Atletico Madrid at the Vicente Calderon.

The attacking midfielder has failed to convince Real's medical staff that he has shaken off a thigh strain which has prevented him from making an appearance since 21 September.

The former Spain international was expected to return to the starting line-up in place of Ruben De la Red.

Meanwhile, Real coach Bernd Schuster is also sweating on the fitness of midfield duo Mahamadou Diarra and Arjen Robben with both players struggling with knocks.

However, Argentina midfielder Fernando Gago is in line to make only his second appearance of the season after returning to full-fitness during the international break.

Meanwhile, rivals Barcelona are hoping that Alex Hleb can make his comeback from an ankle injury in their trip to Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.

The attacking midfielder has been out of action for a month after picking up the injury against Racing Santander on 13 September.

Hleb missed Belarus' World Cup qualifier against England in Minsk on Wednesday, but has returned to training with his Barca team-mates and could make the bench for the trip to San Mames.

However, Eidur Gudjohnsen is set for a spell on the sidelines after suffering a thigh strain while on international duty.

The versatile forward was injured during Iceland's 1-0 win over FYR Macedonia in Reykjavik on Wednesday.