MADRID, Nov. 26 (Xinhua) -- Real Madrid coach, Carlo Ancelotti said on Tuesday that the club would not be taking any risks with the fitness of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Ronaldo will miss Tuesday's Champions League tie at home to Turkish side, Galatasaray after the club confirmed he had a muscle problem which forced him to leave the pitch early in the second half of his side's 5-0 win in Almeria at the weekend.
The club refused to say just how serious Ronaldo's injury is, although indications are that he could recover in time to face Valladolid at the weekend, but one thing is certain: he won't face Galatasaray.
"Cristiano can't play against Galatasaray," confirmed Ancelotti in his pre-game press conference.
"He has a very small problem and he will start to work on it tomorrow (Wednesday). It is a strain, but he is confident he will be able to play on Saturday," added the coach, who nevertheless made one thing clear.
"If there is any risk, he won't play," he commented, before confirming that Angel Di Maria is available after injury had sidelined him at the weekend.
Ancelotti didn't want to give too many details away about his team selection, but he did say that Ronaldo's absence would not mean a change of position for record signing, Gareth Bale, who has begun his Real Madrid career playing on the right.
"I don't think that will change much," he said. "I prefer Bale to play on the right so he can take advantage of his good shot. At the moment we are playing good attacking football and things are also going well in defense."
The main problem in the Real Madrid defense are the continued knee problems suffered by young French international Rafael Varene. Ancelotti said the club had looked at the solution for the continued inflammation around the knee, which have sidelined the excellent young player.
"I have spoken to the doctors and we have decided to give him a rest. He is not going to play for 10 days and we want to ensure his knee doesn't get inflamed again. He doesn't need an operation, all he needs is rest," assured the coach.