Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti believes that the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo at the weekend inspired his side to a 4-2 win over Villarreal.

Ronaldo sat out the La Liga clash through suspension, but saw his teammates score four times to continue their winning run in the league.

"The absence of Cristiano gave us more motivation because he is an indispensable player for us," Ancelotti told reporters at a press conference. "Without him the rest work even harder. [Gareth] Bale has played well, like his teammates.

"It was not an easy game. I understand that after the work we put in against Atletico Madrid it was not easy to approach this game.

"But Bale scored the first goal, assisted the second and put in a good level of performance."

Ronaldo will also miss Madrid's next two league games.