Ahead of tonight's clash at Real Valladolid, Laporta said: "We are very happy with Rijkaard. He is a great coach who is doing very well at a moment when it's so complex in that the players are overloaded with games.

"I am especially proud of him and all the players. I think that a game perhaps like the one against Almeria we would have drawn last season, but this time we won."