Mourinho fine with Ronaldo workload

Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho will resist the urge to rest Cristiano Ronaldo despite a heavy schedule of games ahead.

Ronaldo has club commitments in La Liga and the Champions League, while he also has a crucial two-legged Euro 2012 play-off for Portugal against Bosnia and Herzegovina in November.

The former Manchester United forward is also battling a hip injury, but Mourinho declared he will play against seventh-placed Real Betis on Saturday.

“An injury can happen just by slipping on the stairs. These things are out of our control. But he’s fine,” Mourinho said.

“He’s fine to play tomorrow and he will play. Obviously to play in a play-off game is tough. If you are carrying a niggle, it’s even more demanding.”

“It’s one of those things that require you to use all your strength and all your ability.”

Real slipped up in September in a loss to Levante and a draw to Racing Santander, but have won their three games since and are just a point and goal difference from La Liga leaders Barcelona.

Newly promoted opponents Real Betis began their season with four straight wins, but have stumbled in successive 1-0 losses to Getafe and Levante respectively.

“We are talking about a team who score a lot of goals and play good football in a very ambitious style,” Mourinho said.

“They play an intense brand of football. I think that in reality they are one of the best teams in the first division. We don’t fear them but it will be a difficult game and we have to be prepared for a tough match.”

Mourinho might keep half an eye on the fortunes of arch-rivals Barca, who tackle Racing Santander on Saturday.