Real Madrid vs Espanyol; 5 Talking Points

#1. Cristiano Ronaldo suffering due to the absence of Benzema

Where is it all going wrong for the great man?Conversely, is Isco's and Asensio's perceived selfishness is costing Ronaldo?

Before you throw away your device, let me explain... first let me state that Marco Asensio is one of the best U-21 players around at the moment, anywhere, while anyone who has read point #5 on the first slide will know that Isco to me is pure footballing joy.

In the context of Ronaldo, though, they are completely different from the two characters he has reveled with; Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema. The reason why BBC has worked so well is that Bale has looked to pick out the man who is arguably the best finisher of the three - Ronaldo - whenever he can while Benzema's incessant, and intelligent, off-the-ball movement has continuously opened up spaces all across the attacking third for Ronaldo to attack.

Isco and Asensio, though are more direct and look to take shots at goals themselves whenever they can - the two were even more guilty of ignoring Gareth Bale's many sublime runs against Real Sociedad (whilst Ronaldo was out suspended) a fortnight previously. Carefree and unafraid, youthful enthusiasm and courage filling them to the brim, this direct approach has often meant they ignore others around them in their search for glory -and while this does not seem to have affected the team spirit at the moment, how that makes Ronaldo feel is anybody's guess.

Just how bad is it for CR7? The great man has attempted more shots without scoring than any other player in La Liga this season (and has just got four of them on target)

Like Isco said, though, he is scoring in the Champions League and it's only a matter of time before he puts this nasty goalless streak in La Liga to bed. The question is, though, how many more will Messi get in that time?