Real Madrid

Sergio Ramos believes Real Madrid performed well in Barcelona and that they must now "keep up the good work."

What do you think of Messi winning the Ballon d'Or?
We have to congratulate him for it. He deserves it, but it's a shame that someone from this team didn't win.

Do you think it's fair? There were Spanish players nominated for the award...
I'm Spanish and I would have liked a Spaniard to win. I am privileged to play with great footballers on the national team. But Messi deserves it too.

Didn't the Clasico feel like a victory despite the defeat given that the team's performance was so good?
It didn't feel like a victory, but we did play well. We have to keep up the good work.

Did you notice the laser during the match?
I wasn't pointed at with it, but you can tell it hit Ronaldo's face when he was going to take a free-kick. These things shouldn't happen because they can end up causing problems.

Abidal said that Barcelona players weren't hit by the laser because they were too fast for it...
I'm not going to enter a controversial debate. I don't think Barcelona players would find it so funny if it had happened to one of them. Nevertheless, I don't want to add to the controversy.

Is the team's so-called dependency on Ronaldo justified? What did you think of him being examined by the Medical Staf before and after the match?
The so-called Ronaldo dependency seems to be more important to you lot. We ragard every player on the squad as being equally important to the rest. A player decides if he wants to be examined before a match. It's better to do so in order to avoid the player getting injured again.

Does the team really benefit that much from his return?
He does a lot for the team and he makes a difference. I think anything that has to do with someone recovering from an injury is good. The team is glad to have him back.

It seems the team drops its performances in the last 45 minutes...
That's right, but I don't think it's something physical. I think it has more to do with an excess in confidence. We seem to relax and we fail to finish off our chances. We could have won the match at Camp Nou, but we failed to score. We can still change this and keep our performances up in the last 45 minutes.

I guess you'll want Sevilla to deat Barcelona in the Copa del Rey...
It's always sad to be eliminated from a competition, especially one as important as the Copa del Rey. Sevilla are playing at a great level and I wish them luck.

Is it easier to concentrate on the match against Almeria now that you have no mid-week games?
We are equally calm about it all and the work we do is the same. We have more time to prepare for it than in other weeks.

It seems Benzema is finding it hard to adapt to the team...
I guess that's what people outside the team think because he doesn't speak the language. He speaks French and a little English. He has adapted well and he is proving he will gradually perform better.

Wednesday will mark the 14th anniversary of Guti's First Division debut.
It is hard to be an elite player like he is in the world of football. We must congratulate him. Many footballers would love to have the career he's had and to win as many titles.