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Mourinho denies axing Real Madrid star Ronaldo

Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho denies any rift with Cristiano Ronaldo after defeat to Real Zaragoza.

Mourinho also asked about his decision to leave top scorer Ronaldo out of his squad for the match, which has been viewed by some as a reaction to the critical comments the £80million man made about Madrid's defensive approach to Wednesday's Champions League game with Barca.

Mourinho said: "It was my decision because I had Higuain and Benzema to play.

"They were both motivated and eager to play 90 minutes. Also, Higuain needs playing time to recover his top form. I also had (Emmanuel) Adebayor and Di Maria on the bench, I had options."

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