Real Madrid ace Cristiano Ronaldo proved the difference in victory over Rayo Vallecano.

Rayo Vallecano were left to rue a glut of missed opportunities as Ronaldo's brilliant backheel earned Primera Division leaders Real Madrid a 1-0 victory at Vallecas.

"It is easy to drop points at this stadium. Rayo did not deserve to lose. Some may say we didn't play a good game. A draw would have been a just result because Rayo were fantastic and they don't deserve people saying Real Madrid didn't play well," said Real coach Jose Mourinho.

"They deserve to hear they did a fantastic job against us. They made us work incredibly hard and had three clear chances to score. We could have sealed the match with counterattacks in the second half but didn't. The players, coaching staff and fans of Rayo Vallecano deserve to hear people say they deserved more."