Real Madrid: Sergio Ramos's calf injury 'not serious'

Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane says the calf injury that forced off club captain Sergio Ramos against Deportivo La Coruna is "nothing serious". The 29-year-old Spain international was substituted at half-time as Real ran out 5-0 winners at the Santiago Bernabeu in Zidane's first game in charge.

But Zidane said the injury was not a major one and that tests would be carried out to identify the extent of the problem. "Ramos felt a slight niggle, I don't think it is anything important, we will see tomorrow with the scan," Zidane told Real's official website after the match.

A Gareth Bale hat-trick set Real on their way to a sweeping victory over Deportivo and kept the capital club four points behind Atletico Madrid at the top of the La Liga table.

Zidane, whose only prior coaching experience was an 18-month stint at Real Madrid's B team, said he was pleased with the attitude of his players after his first match as first-team boss.

"What I will remember is the attitude of those that played and those that didn't," the former Madrid midfielder stated. "The most important thing is the few days of work that we have had. The attitude of the players has been rewarded with a good win. The idea is to try and play good football and win games. The fans were fantastic."

Long-term appointment

Zidane's appointment to the Real hot seat took some by surprise, with legendary German coach Ottmar Hitzfeld describing it as "madness". But Spanish football journalist Guillem Balague said the Frenchman was not under any immediate pressure from Real's hierarchy and would be given sufficient time to settle into his role.

"I feel Real Madrid have got the excuses ready for Zidane if they fail to win anything this season, so he will be kept on next season," he told Sky Sports. "In my opinion, they have no chance to [win] La Liga. [But] Real are joint-favourites with any team in the Champions League as it is only seven games. They have got enough quality players to raise their game for knock-out competitions," Balague added.

Madrid face Serie A side Roma in the Champions League round of 16 in February.