Karanka backs Mourinho over Casillas axing

Real Madrid assistant coach Aitor Karanka says Jose Mourinho has not told Iker Casillas why he was dropped for the game against Malaga.

The Real club captain was snubbed in favour of understudy goalkeeper Antonio Adan for the clash against Malaga, who defeated the league champions 3-2 on December 22, the last match before the Spanish winter break.

Karanka believes Mourinho does not owe any player an explanation for his actions, and insisted the coach’s decisions should not be questioned.

“Mourinho doesn’t have to justify why a player plays or not. But he knows which players need explanations more than others,” the 39-year-old was quoted as saying by Marca.

“Iker wasn’t given any explanation about why he was dropped. As a coach, you pick whoever you think is going to do the best job.”

Karanka also took time to explain why he regularly replaces Mourinho in press conferences, reminding the public of the Portuguese’s cold relationship with Spanish journalists.

“A while ago he told me I would have to face the media regularly. This is because he doesn’t have a good relationship with journalists.”