Cristiano Ronaldo is desperate to play again after missing the last nine matches with an ankle injury, and the Real Madrid forward wants to be back in time for ‘El Clasico’ against Barcelona later this month.
Ronaldo is due to return to see Dutch specialist Professor Niek van Dijk – who operated on the 24-year-old’s right ankle in the summer of 2008 – in seven days’ time, but the former Manchester United forward is confident that a return is not far off.
“I’m not a doctor, but I can say that I’m feeling better all the time. I’ve already started to run and next week I hope to be with the squad, but we will have to wait to see what happens,” he said. “I’m anxious because I cannot play and this is what I like most.”
“We have games against Racing and Zurich and they are very important. Of course I want to be able to face Barca, which is one of the great games, but I also want to be able to play before then.”
In his first seven competitive games following his record £80million summer move, Ronaldo scored nine goals to help Madrid to an unbeaten start to the season.
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