Zinedine Zidane Comments on Real Madrid's Transfer Ban, Cristiano Ronaldo, More

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has labelled the FIFA-imposed transfer ban that will see Los Blancos unable to register new players until January 2018 as "absurd." 

The Frenchman said the club would fight the sanction, with Real likely to now appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, per Football Espana: "I do not understand it, and it annoys me. It is absurd—the club want to change it quickly, and I hope it is changed. My kids were born here and have spent their whole lives here, so why should they not be able to play football? It's absurd."

Real and city neighbours Atletico Madrid were revealed on Thursday to have lost their first appeal against a two-window ban for breaching rules over the transfer of foreign players under the age of 18, per BBC Sport.

Per Yahoo Sport, Zidane's four sons are reportedly among the players deemed to have been wrongly transferred.

Both Madrid clubs now face the prospect of not being able to add to their squads until midway through next season.

Zidane also confirmed that Cristiano Ronaldo is back to full fitness and will turn out for Saturday's LaLiga clash with Osasuna as Real look to claim a third win from three at the start of the new season, per Spanish football writer Dermot Corrigan:

The 31-year-old superstar has not played competitively since he limped out of July's UEFA Euro 2016 final, which Portugal went on to win 1-0 against France.

The three-time Ballon d'Or winner will be crucial for Real as they look to win LaLiga for the first time since 2012 and defend their UEFA Champions League title.

Per Corrigan, Zidane said he wants Ronaldo to play as much as possible in 2016-17, further stressing his importance to the side:

Real made no blockbuster additions to their squad in the summer transfer window—they lost out on Paul Pogba to Manchester United—but they did buy striker Alvaro Morata back from Juventus.

Zidane, 44, said he is happy with the club's business and insisted he is satisfied with the current squad, per Football Espana: "I am very happy with the squad we have, it's a big squad with 24 first-team players."

Given the lengthy transfer ban Real have been handed, Zidane is likely to have to make full use of his current playing staff for the next season-and-a-half.

With Los Blancos likely to be competing on numerous fronts, keeping key players fit will be crucial as they will have no opportunity to buy in any replacements.