Real Madrid’s Higuain praise for teammate Cassano

He said: “The truth is we understood eachother very well. Antonio was able to catch where I was planning to run and his passing was excellent for me.

“His centre was the best. I was able to collect the ball with enough distance between myself and Leo Franco, which gave me the time to pick my spot.”

He added: “The best thing is now that people do not think I am hopeless. I know people were becoming impatient with me because I hadn’t scored. For me, all goals are important, but especially the derby ones.”