"Real Madrid did not take the departure of Ronaldo seriously"

Ex-footballer Valdano, who currently works as a pundit for 'El Transmitor' on 'Onda Cero', says that the upcoming clash between Barcelona and Madrid will be special, because the field of play will lack the familiar faces of the two players that have monopolised the game throughout the last decade.

Valdano believes that the level of the occasion will fall significantly without the pair.

He also shared his opinions on the different coping strategies of Barcelona and Madrid to the casualties of their star men: "In Barcelona, they are trembling because they are without Messi... and  at Real Madrid they treated the departure of Cristiano like a sort of joke."

Aside from this small observation, Valdano took time to analise the current situation of 'Los Blancos', assuring that the problem isn't Julen Lopetegui: "Goals are the most difficult thing in football and the problem at Madrid is goals... they are lacking a specialist and this will not be resolved with a change of manager."

Finally, he also insisted that some of the team's problems could have taken place because of the World Cup, as two key players that went far in the tournament, have slumped so far this campaign: "Varane and Modric are clearly showing wear and tear from the World Cup."