Alvaro Arbeloa lends support to Cristiano Ronaldo via Twitter

Sep 4, 2012 2:00:00 PM

The former Liverpool right-back has taken to social media to show support for his colleague amid rumors that the Portuguese is no longer happy in the Spanish capital

Alvaro Arbeloa has come out in support of Real Madrid team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo, after the forward revealed that he is "sad" due to professional problems within the club.

The 27-year-old caused a media frenzy with his comments after Los Blancos beat Granada 3-0 on Sunday evening, saying that he had not celebrated his two goals because he was unhappy, and that "people within the club know why".

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Cristiano Ronaldo "sad" due to "professional" problems at the Santiago Bernabeu

Rumours have since circulated that Ronaldo wants to leave the Liga champions because key figures at the Santiago Bernabeu have backed Iker Casillas to win the Ballon d'Or, though he had also stated that his problems were "more important" than being beaten to Uefa's best player prize by Barcelona's Andres Iniesta.

Arbeloa has selected a picture of himself alongside Ronaldo taken during a pre-season friendly as his avatar on the site, and later posted a tweet criticising the kind of press coverage that the story has been attracting.

"If you are not careful with the media, they will make you love the oppressor and hate the oppressed," the former Liverpool man tweeted, loosely quoting Malcolm X.

The 29-year-old full-back also spoke to the club's official site, saying that Ronaldo will be at the club 'for many years'.

"He is aware that he is at the best team and I hope he stays until he retires. It is what the fans want; he is an idol at the club. I hope the fans don't feel bad about what he said.

"Cristiano always wants to win prizes, but his main ambition is to win prizes with Real Madrid. I do not think winning the Uefa Best Player award is important to him. He is our best player, and I think he'll be in Madrid for many years to come."

Brazilian playmaker Kaka had also lent his support to the Portuguese earlier on Monday, telling reporters: "Cristiano is a key player for Real Madrid, and he knows that he has the full support of the team.

"The most important thing is that he is feeling well and is happy because he is very important for us. We will all support him."