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Ronaldo and Benzema injury worries for Madrid

Xinhua, April 27, 2016 Adjust font size:

Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane has admitted that his side could be without strikers Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema for the return leg of their Champions League semifinal at home against Manchester City next Wednesday.

Ronaldo had participated in his side's pre-game training session on Monday night, but as soon as he stepped out on Tuesday for the pre-match warm up, he made a signal to the bench that he would not be able to play.

The striker, who until a week ago had played every minute in Madrid's league campaign suffered the injury against Villarreal and missed last Saturday's win away to Rayo Vallecano

Benzema meanwhile was able to overcome a muscle problem, but didn't look comfortable on the pitch and was replaced at halftime on Tuesday night during the 0-0 draw.

"Cristiano suffered a relapse and that is why he didn't play," explained Zidane in his post-game press conference.

"Karim's problem was different, he was able to play but he felt worse as the game went on. We didn't want to take risks, so we will see if he is able to play in the return leg."

The 0-0 draw means a win next week will take Madrid into the final, but the fact they failed to score an away goal leaves them open to the danger of Manchester City scoring in the Santiago Bernabeu stadium and leaving them needing to score twice in order to qualify.

However, the injuries to Ronaldo and Benzema could affect more than their Champions League campaign as Saturday sees them travel to play Real Sociedad knowing anything other than a win would mean the end of their challenge for the Spanish BBVA Primera Liga title. Enditem