No let-up for Pellegrini at Real

Madrid: The Spanish press on Monday piled on the pressure on Real Madrid`s embattled coach Manuel Pellegrini after the club`s defeat to arch-rivals Barcelona at the weekend.

Pellegrini is "condemned", headlined sports daily Marca, which published a list of possible replacements for the Chilean next season. They included Inter Milan`s Jose Mourinho, Liverpool`s Spanish manager Rafael Benitez, Chelsea`s Carlo Ancelotti and former Chelsea boss Luiz Felipe Scolari, now with Uzbekistan side Bunyodkor. Real lost 2-0 at home on Saturday to Barcelona in `El Clasico`, leaving them trailing the champions by three points with seven games left. Pellegrini has already seen his side lose to unknowns Alcorcon in the King`s Cup and crash out of the Champions League to Lyon at the last 16 stage. The poor results have come despite a 250-million-euro summer spending spree - the bulk of it on Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo. The club`s director general, Jorge Valdano, defended Pellegrini. "Real will not give in and the coach has our full support," he told sports daily AS. However, the El Pais newspaper recalled that Pellegrini had been picked by Valdano last summer although he was not the first choice of club chairman Florentino Perez, who could now be tempted to replace him. Pellegrini is "on the ropes," said another paper, El Mundo, while AS said "the future of Real depends on the signing of Mourinho." The players returned to training on Monday under the eye of Pellegrini for Thursday`s match at Almeria. "We are going to defend the coach and he will have the support of the team until the last day," said Real defender Sergio Ramos after the session. "We will be delighted if he continues" next season. Bureau Report