Vulture deflects criticism

Emilio Butragueno has said that Real Madrid will wait before they offer Iker Casillas and Ivan Helguera new deals at the Bernabeu and has defended the club against further criticism about recent poor displays.

Both Casillas and Helguera have been linked with moves to Manchester United and both have a number of other suitors, but the Spanish giants are in no hurry to tie them to new deals.

Despite the duo's current deals expiring at the end of the current season, and Casillas admitting there is only a 60 percent chance of him staying, Madrid are not rushing to the negotiating table.

"We are at the end of November and we have until the beginning of January before they can talk to other teams," Butragueno said.

"There is nothing new and we have five weeks left before then. We are going wait."

Madrid have been castigated in the media after their dismal display against Barcelona last weekend with criticism centred around the buying policy of the club and the decision to tour the Far East.

The club's vice president was in no mood to make excuses as he defended the decision not to buy Ronaldinho because, reports suggest, he was not as commercially attractive as David Beckham.

"At a certain time you have make decisions," Butragueno said. "When Ronaldinho was available we had the best players in that position, but that is already in the past and we must not punish ourselves for it."

The tour of the Far East in the summer has also been highlighted as the main reason that several key players are picking up injuries and the team is looking tired.

"We have been unlucky, especially with injuries to players like Ronaldo, Julio Baptista, Zinedine Zidane and Raul. When things do not go well people begin searching for reasons everywhere.

"When the team is winning nobody says anything and when we win there is silence."