INJURIES MEAN A DARK DAY FOR REAL

.The recent league game against Betis, which barely seemed important at this point of the season, involved many more setbacks than José Mourinho would have hoped for. Not only was Marcelo injured on 14 minutes, but Luka Modric and Karim Benzema also failed to make it to the end of the match.

The Croatian midfielder had to be replaced by Pepe on 63 minutes because of a muscle strain. The team doctor assessed his condition on the pitch and immediately signalled to Mou for him to be replaced. The Portuguese manager opted to bring on his countryman to play a more advanced role than usual in the centre of midfield.

With the game drawing to a close, Karim Benzema was also taken off with a niggle, with Gonzalo Higuaín coming on to replace him. The France striker had time to put his team 2-0 up prior to being taken off, though. Benzema's injury doesn't seem to be too serious and it's thought he was replaced more as a precaution than anything else.

Ricardo Carvalho also ended the game with a bit of a limp, but this will be less worrying for Mourinho, since the coach barely uses the Portuguese centre-back when it comes to important games.