Zinedine Zidane backs Karim Benzema to beat drought
Zinedine Zidane has backed striker Karim Benzema to become a stronger on the back of recent criticism.
Benzema has scored just one goal since October in the league and has not found the back of the net in any of his last six games in all competitions.
As a result there have been boos and jeers from sections of the Bernabeu aimed in the Frenchman's direction.
Karim Benzema has been struggling in front of goal in recent months
But Zidane thinks that Benzema will become better when he comes through this barren spell.
Zidane said: 'People can think whatever they want. Day to day, he looks good, motivated in what he does. I'm happy with his work.
'Of course I'd like Karim to score – it's not only me – but the important thing is the way he does his work in that position. He plays in a way that helps others to score. There's a great understanding between him and Cristiano [Ronaldo].
'It hurts me when my players are criticised, but sometimes it helps them to grow.'
Benzema, Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo train ahead of Real's game with Napoli
Real Madrid play Napoli in the Champions League and Zidane is expecting a tough test for the Spanish side to hold on to their title.
He added: 'In a knockout like this, you know that you've got the away leg to play and the important thing at home is to keep a clean sheet,' he said.
'But the message I want is for us to do what we've done recently. We know that it's a 50-50 game. We have the first match at home and we can hurt our opponents.
'I think Sarri is doing well, his team play really attractive football and the results he's getting are good.
Zinedine Zidane has backed Benzema to come through his barren spell
'Defensively they are good and they move very quickly. They have small players who are very good technically. But we have our weapons.
'In order to stop them, we're going to have to concentrate, because we're going to suffer.
'We know the difficulty of this competition. We're going step by step. Of course, we all want to win the Champions League, but it's a long and hard road that we're on.
'It's one game, it's very important, we know the importance of it. But the final is in Cardiff. We have this tie first and we have to play it.
'Madrid will always be a favourite in this competition, but the badge does not guarantee that you'll win.'