Mijatovic sings Real's praises

Real Madrid are not a club to downplay their achievements and Predrag Mijatovic, was true to tradition yesterday when he declared the La Liga leaders to be, "the most complete team in the world both in terms of results and in terms of play." The club's sporting director added: "I follow all the leagues and there isn't a team in the world that is better than us. You only have to look at the statistics to see that we are the best."

Luciano Spalletti, the coach of Roma, Real's next Champions League opponents, will doubtless note the boast. It may come in useful during the team-talk.

Real, who lead La Liga by seven points, have Arjen Robben and Christoph Metzelder back in training, but Pepe and Gabriel Heinze will miss tomorrow's home match with third-placed Villarreal and Wes Sneijder is doubtful. Villarreal are just the sort of counter-attacking side to make Mijatovic's claim look daft. Barcelona, at Athletic Bilbao, remain without Ronaldinho.

Serie A champions and leaders Internazionale, who might argue they are the world's best on current form, especially given the astonishing list of injuries Roberto Mancini has dealt with, are at Udinese tomorrow. Cristian Chivu, Maicon and David Suazo are the latest absentees.