Cristiano Ronaldo appears to swear at Zinedine Zidane after first ever tactical Real Madrid substitution

Real Madrid saw their lead at the top of La Liga cut to one point

Ronaldo has only completed 90 minutes twice this season (Getty Images)

Cristiano Ronaldo left the pitch seething on Saturday night as he was substituted for tactical reasons for the first time in his Real Madrid career.

The 11-time Champions League winners were 2-1 up against Las Palmas with 18 minutes to go when Zinedine Zidane decided to replace the three-time Ballon d’Or winner, only for Sergio Araujo to equalise and cause Madrid to suffer their second draw in three days.

Ronaldo looked furious at the unfamiliar decision and refused to look at his manager as they shook hands following his removal.

He was caught on camera yelling “forda-se”, a Portuguese phrase translating to “f***”, as he was walking off the pitch before being told to calm down by Madrid’s matchday delegate.

His anger continued as he was on the bench appearing to say “su puta madra” towards Zidane, which translates as “m**********r”.

The former Manchester United star’s mother posted a picture to Twitter of her son looking visibly upset at the substitution and captioned it “never put your head down.”

Ronaldo had a poor evening in front of goal and with Madrid’s Champions League tie with Borussia Dortmund at the forefront of his thinking, he was keen to ensure the Portuguese forward was fit.

"I have to take him off sometimes and tonight we did it," said Zidane when asked about the decision.

"That isn't going to change what we are going to do continue to do.

"We have a game on Tuesday and I thought it was the time to take him off, 20 minutes from the end, thinking about Tuesday.

(Getty Images (Getty Images)

"I know he always wants to play and always wants to stay on the field, but I also have to think about the players and for me it was best to rest and think about Tuesday."

The result left Real’s lead over Barcelona cut to a single point having seen their 16-game winning streak ended with the 1-1 draw with Villarreal last Wednesday.