Frank Rijkaard has ruled out any possibility of Brazilian striker Ronaldinho falling out with the club's hiearchy, and said that Ronaldinho is in fact unwell, and not dropped from the side. Barcelona picked up an excellent 4-1 victory against Valladolid to see the gap to Real Madrid decrease to four points.

“When I said he wasn’t well, it meant he wasn’t well,” the coach said. “He hasn’t disappointed me.

“I am behind him. I can’t be disappointed by him because he gave a lot to the club and to the team.”

He then added about his team’s form: “We have to congratulate them for their superb victory.

"I hope that the injured players will have recovered soon. I hope that Deco, Rafael Marquez and Ronaldinho will be back with the squad.”