Real Madrid call press conference with president Florentino Perez to discuss

Madrid president Florentino Perez will hold a press conference on Monday evening, when he is reportedly set to offer public backing to Benitez amid reports of internal divisions – most notably between the coach and misfiring star forward Cristiano Ronaldo.

Benitez has only been in charge of Madrid since the summer, but already finds himself under increasing pressure, initially for a perceived negative style of play and now due to Saturday’s 4-0 home mauling by arch-rivals Barcelona.

Following Saturday’s 4-0 win over Real Madrid at the Bernabeu, Barcelona manager Luis Enrique has claimed that the La Liga and Champions League holders can still improve through the rest of the season.

It was nearly after ten years ago when Ronaldinho single handedly destroyed Real Madrid to get a standing ovation from the Santiago Bernabeu crowd, and it looked like it was happening all again but the difference was the players were different but Real Madrid’s fate was the same.

With their second defeat of the league, Real have slipped down to the third spot, with 24 points from the 12 games which they have played.

But Perez defended Benitez at a hastily arranged press conference, saying: “We want to communicate that he has all our support and confidence”.

“I’m talking about this moment we are in now”, he added. “No one can say what will happen in six months”.

Saturday’s heavy defeat was not the first time that Benitez’s tactical approach has been questioned this season.

The Barca coach said he side were travelling to Madrid “with the aim of winning the three points”. “And I think it will be unfair as given the chance, time and confidence, then he can improve pretty much any side in the world, as he showed with many teams in the past”. There are plenty of things we need to improve on and the players know that… they’re no fools.

Marca suggested yesterday the fate of 55-year-old Benitez is sealed, even if he will not move on until the end of the season.

Benitez faces pressure from within his own squad after reports emerged of an unhappy Cristiano Ronaldo telling his team-mates that either “he [Benitez] goes, or I go”.

“Real suffered against a really strong Barcelona”.