Recovering Ronaldo remains absent for Madrid

Cristiano Ronaldo has once again been omitted from Real Madrid's squad for Saturday's contest against Celta Vigo despite stepping up his recovery from a knee injury this week.

The superstar forward did not feature in Madrid's UEFA Super Cup victory over Sevilla or last weekend's season-opening 3-0 victory at Real Sociedad in LaLiga due to the problem he sustained in Portugal's Euro 2016 final victory over France.

Earlier this week, Ronaldo posted a video on Instagram of behind-the-scenes drills at Madrid's Valdebebas training base, sparking hope of a return against Celta.

But the 31-year-old, who was voted Best Player in Europe by UEFA on Thursday, was not included in a 19-man squad announced by Madrid.

Striker Karim Benzema also remains absent, while Isco misses out having picked up an ankle injury against Sociedad.