Zinedine Zidane has hailed the quality and longevity of Cristiano Ronaldo, stating there are ‘no words’ which can do him ‘justice’.
The Portuguese star netted 14 goals in his most recent nine matches including eight goals in the space of three Champions League matches, to bring Los Blancos to within a game of a league and Champions League ‘double’.
“As you well know, there are no words that can do Cristiano Ronaldo justice,” Zidane told UEFA.com.
“He shows what he’s all about every time he’s on the pitch, by scoring goals.
“He’s now got more than 400 goals for Real Madrid in all competitions These are unbelievable stats, but with him anything’s possible.
“It’s (his rotation) a decision we made together, based on discussions together, we’re intelligent and even he sometimes needs to play a bit less.
“It’s not because he isn’t as physically fit, but because he wants to head into the final stage of the season, when everything is at stake, in top form.
“He has played a lot this year, but there have been a few occasions when he has been left out to have a breather. Now he’s in fantastic shape for what remains of the campaign.
“It isn’t just about this year, it’s the accumulation of all the seasons in his career in which he has played 60 or 70 matches. It gets to the point where you need to take a breather.”