Luis Suarez puts spirit in Barcelona's holy trinity

Real Madrid galactico Cristiano Ronaldo did not enjoy being asked last week if the clear friendship shared by Barcelona’s three big name attackers was key to their superb recent performances.

“At Manchester United, the year we won the Champions League, I didn’t speak with Paul Scholes, [Ryan] Giggs or [Rio] Ferdinand,” Ronaldo said. “I don’t need to go for supper with [Karim] Benzema, or invite [Gareth] Bale over to my house. Little kisses or little hugs off the field are worthless. The important thing is the team wins on the pitch.”

Ronaldo was also annoyed by a question about the ‘pass penalty’ played by Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez the previous weekend against Celta Vigo. “I know why he did it, but I’m not going to tell you…” the Portuguese replied enigmatically.