Real Madrid coach: No problem with Roberto Carlos

Real Madrid coach Mariano Garcia Remon insists there was nothing sinister in his decision to start Saturday's defeat at Athletic Bilbao with Roberto Carlos on the bench.

It was one of the rare occasions that an available Roberto Carlos has started a competitive match at Real amongst the substitutes and the news that he wouldn't be starting spread through Europe like wildfire.

But Garcia Remon insisted afterwards: "There was nothing ulterior about it. Roberto Carlos is a very important player and I felt he had been under a lot of pressure this week."

"We have an important game on Tuesday against AS Roma and I wanted to give him a rest."