Cristiano Ronaldo: Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane defends Portuguese after booing heard at Bernabeu

The Madrid club are third in the table, 12 points adrift of bitter Catalan foes Barcelona

Samuel Stevens
Monday 07 March 2016 18:17 GMT
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Zinedine Zidane with Ronaldo
Zinedine Zidane with Ronaldo

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane insists he wants Cristiano Ronaldo to stay at the La Liga giants despite some supporters directing their fury in the Portuguese’s direction.

The Madrid club are third in the table, 12 points adrift of bitter Catalan foes Barcelona and four points behind Atletico leading to a section of the Bernabeu crowd turning on their players.

Ronaldo, linked with a return to Manchester United, was booed again on Saturday before scoring four goals to help Real dispose with Celta Vigo in an emphatic victory which was as much a personal rebuttal as it was a crucial three points.

Speaking to the media afterwards, Zidane said: “I am the coach and I want Cristiano. They whistled me and everyone else. It is not questioning the player, it is a fan base that always wants more from their players and that is good for the players to improve and always do well.

“In the end, the fans love the players and that is the most important thing. I always see a full stadium and that says a lot.”

Madrid are preparing to face Roma in the second-leg of their Champions League round-of-16 tie after securing a 2-0 victory in Italy last month.

“For me it is the most important game because it is the next one,” Zidane added. “The only thing we have to do is win the game tomorrow. That is our goal, we need to think solely about tomorrow's game.

“Many people think it is going to be easy and it won't be.”

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