Casillas vows to fight for his Real Madrid spot

MADRID: Real Madrid captain Iker Casillas admitted on Tuesday the players are unhappy after dropping 16 points behind La Liga leaders Barcelona but denied any tensions in the changing room and vowed to fight to regain his spot after being unexpectedly left on the bench last month.

Casillas tried to calm a storm of speculation over splits in the club after coach Jose Mourinho dropped him from the starting line-up on December 23 against Malaga at La Roselada, a game Real Madrid lost 3-2. Mourinho insists the decision was taken on technical grounds alone.

Asked about any tensions in the dressing room, the 31-year-old keeper said: “The word is not tension. The situation in the league, when we have had certain defeats, is not what we want. We all want to win and when things don’t turn out well we are sad because we want to win for ourselves and our fans.”

In his first news conference of 2013, the Real Madrid captain said he hoped the Christmas break would help the team recover, recalling their defeat to Malaga and the number of points they have now allowed to ratch up behind the first division leaders.

Casillas said he felt fit, however, and would battle to regain his place for Sunday’s match against Real Sociedad.

“I feel fine, really. I am training. I think I have to improve every day. I am not a machine. I, too, have to learn from my mistakes and of course there are moments when you are better or worse but sincerely I feel fine,” he said.

The captain said he had spoken to Real Madrid defender Pepe, who fed the rumours swirling around the troubled club last week when he told a newspaper in Portugal that Portuguese players were under pressure in La Liga.

“He was referring to when we go other pitches and play away. They always have an excitable reception. We have to call for calm in football in general. People should support their team but keep up a certain appearance,” Casillas said.

Following captain Iker Casillas’s message of calm Real Madrid’s star striker Cristiano Ronaldo vowed on Wednesday that the faltering Spanish title holders would fight back in 2013 and played down reported tensions in the club. after the team dropped 16 points behind rivals Barcelona in the league.

“It is difficult when a top team like Real Madrid that is used to winning finds itself not at its best level. It is normal that people get a bit more tense,” Ronaldo told a news conference.

“We have to admit that we are having a bad moment but I am sure this will be a good year. We are training well and so good things are sure to come.”

Ronaldo declined to comment on his own long-term plans with Real Madrid, which has not yet indicated whether it will renew his current contract beyond 2015.

“That is not the most important thing right now,” said Ronaldo, who is the third-highest scorer in the league this season with 14 goals. “More important than that is to find the right way to keep winning.

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