Real Madrid give backing to coach Schuster

Real Madrid gave their backing to coach Bernd Schuster and his squad yesterday after a poor run of form had led to speculation over the German's future.

"The club have complete confidence in the players and the coaching staff," sports director Predrag Mijatovic told a news conference.

"We took a tough decision to get rid of Fabio Capello and bring in Bernd Schuster a year ago and we were proved right as he had a great campaign to win the league title. We continue to be happy with his work and the players we have.

"We have one of the best squads in Europe and we are confident we can still achieve at least one of our objectives for this season."

Real are fourth in the standings, five points behind leaders and arch-rivals Barcelona after 11 matches and lie second in Champions League Group H behind Juventus, with six points from four games.