Calling Cristiano Ronaldo’s importance to Real Madrid into question would be absurd. The presence of one of the decade’s best two goal scorers will be key to the side’s quest to win trophies this season.
The Portuguese forward rarely misses a minute. He’s a machine, almost super-human and fortunately he has managed to avoid any significant injuries throughout his time at the Santiago Bernabeu.
However, the news is that Rafael Benitez will rest him against Cadiz. Madrid go into the Copa del Rey game against the third division side as massive favourites, allowing the Spanish coach to rotate his squad and to give some minutes to those who don’t feature as frequently.
Five Castilla players have been called up for the encounter at the Ramon de Carranza, but Ronaldo, 31 in February, has not been included in the 17-man squad.
Voracious each time he steps on to the pitch, Ronaldo has never hidden his hunger or his desire to play in every match. He doesn’t differentiate between friendlies, La Liga games or Champions League finals.
“I don’t know how to lose, it really winds me up,” he said recently during the promotion of his new biopic.
Watching a game involving his team from the bench or the stands is an illusion for Ronaldo. It’s not something he does. The last time he missed a match for his club was in February, a 2-1 win over Sevilla - he was suspended.