Marca their words: No Madrid Derby for Cristiano

You have to admire 'Marca'. Their ability to build up hope among the Real Madrid faithful, only to deflate the white half of the Spanish capital minutes later, is second to none. The headline swept from Cristiano Ronaldo being available for the Madrid derby on saturday; to being out for a further month minimum. From a final check in Madrid before being cleared to train; to being in Holland with Dr Van Dijk, the man who operated on Ronaldo's ankle in July 2008.

What's clear is that he certainly won't be facing Atletico Madrid. Nor will he be taking any further part in the Champions League group stages. There had been hope that Ronaldo was on the mend, but his latest medical showed no improvement at all, and he was promptly packed off to Amsterdam with agent Jorge Mendes. Right now there are two routes Ronaldos wounded ankle can go down: treatment and one month out or the dreaded surgeon's scalpel. An operation would cast upon CR9 (as he likes to be known) a lay-off of up to three months; in other words, disaster.

It would be an unfortunate journey for Ronaldo, from the theatre of dreams to the operating theatre, and fans will undoubtedly miss the sight of Ronaldo in full flight, regardless of their opinion of the man. Madrid, Marca, Florentino, Pelligrini and everyone else whose future depends on the Portuguese star, will be holding their breath until 3pm (Remember, GMT +1) today, when Cristiano meets with the Dutch specialist.