Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo injured in training, Benitez rules out striker's exit

Benzema sustained a muscle pull in his right thigh while Ronaldo tweaked his back

Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema have both picked up injuries in training which will see them miss the Audi Cup which will be played in Munich. The two forwards were left out of the squad for the pre-season tournament which includes Tottenham, AC Milan and hosts Bayern Munich.

Benzema sustained a muscle pull in his right thigh while Ronaldo tweaked his back, leaving Rafa Benitez with no choice but to rest the duo ahead of the Los Blanco’s La Liga campaign. The new Real Madrid coach explained his decision to leave out the forwards from his squad in a recent press conference, stating that ‘the most important thing is a footballer’s health’.

"Cristiano Ronaldo and Benzema have not come because they have had some problems this morning. We prefer to not risk them because the most important thing in the footballers' health. The rest of the squad is here, except for Coentrao as he is injured," Benitez said, according to the SPORT.

Rafa says Benzema is not leaving; dismisses speculation about David De Gea

Benitez also spoke about the speculation surrounding Karim Benzema and sounded quite confident when he said that the French international will not be leaving the Santiago Bernabeu this season.

“My answer is that I think Benzema is going to stay with us. I’m very happy with him. There’s no reason to think that he’s going to go,” he said, as reported in The Guardian.

He also dismissed speculation linking David De Gea to the Santiago Bernabeu, saying:

“I’ve said in five previous press conferences that I don’t want to talk about players who are in other teams. We have three very good keepers. I can talk about them, not other goalkeepers.”

‘The aim is to win every trophy that we compete for’

The Spaniard wants Real Madrid to show their quality this season and is adamant that the team aims to win every trophy they compete for. He is impressed with the depth of the squad and acknowledged that they do have great players.

"I have got excellent impressions of this great squad which has great players. I know that they are competitive, due to how they train, and I love it. From the first moment we have seen the desire to win,”

“For Real Madrid, the aim is to win every trophy that we compete for. We know that it won't be easy due to the quality of the teams facing us, but it is a great opportunity to show our quality and find form ahead of our first competitive game of the season." he added, as quoted in the SPORT.

Real Madrid will play Spurs on 4th August, followed by their second fixture on the very next day. Their La Liga campaign begins on 23 August, when they visit newly-promoted Sporting Gijon.