Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane says he can understand the stay-away fans.

There were empty seats for victory over Huesca at the Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday.

Zidane said: "You have to accept what the fans do. We're here and they're in charge. If they want to come and watch the game, we're delighted. This year we're not going to win anything and that could be an important factor."

He added: "When a club like Real Madrid knows that there's no chance of lifting trophies it's tough, but the players are professionals and we want to end the season strongly. The motivation comes naturally.

"There were spells during the game when we struggled but what I take away from the game is the effort from the players. They score an early goal and they then drew level again… but we believed that we could win right up until the end and we managed to do that."