PA PhotosCristiano Ronaldo can slot into a more central role

Lady Luck hasn't been shining on the Real Madrid treatment room this season. Injuries here, injuries there, injuries everywhere. Problems at the back, gaps to be plugged. Not just one full-back sidelined, but three - all in the same week. Marcelo, Fabio Coentra and Alvaro Arbeloa all leaving boss Jose Mourinho to work his magic and shuffle his pack in their absence. If that's not enough, Sami Khedira, a key cog in the team's engine room, is out. Add striker Karim Benzema to the list of injury absentees and throw in a bit of Gonzalo Higuain for good measure. Take that, Madrid.

- Are two senior strikers enough for Real?
- Ronaldo set to take striking role

Los Blancos will go into Sunday night's La Liga clash at Levante with the defensive options possibly boosted by the return of Coentrao, meaning Alvaro Arbeloa can return to his regular right-back slot and Sergio Ramos can have his nightmare stint in the same position ended for a return alongside Pepe in the centre. Better. Mourinho will be faced with a different dilemma at the Estadi Ciutat de Valencia, however, with both of his front men struggling for fitness.

Their absence is a blow. It's a big blow - but it's not the end of the world as the Spanish media would lead you to believe. The Frenchman and Argentinian were superb last season, rotating seamlessly to help Madrid to the title. Scoring goals aplenty, remaining fit through the season thanks to Mourinho's striker rotation. To keep two world-class players happy with them knowing they won't be starting week-in, week-out - instead complementing each other with their rotation and only seldom playing together, was a job very well done last season. It's not been the same this season, however.

You'd possibly understand the cries of panic if Mourinho was forced to delve into the Castilla team to plug the gap left by the pair (or maybe not, given Mourinho's recent Castilla-based rant - but that's for another day), but the cries of panic are over one of, if not the best players in the world filling in there instead: Cristiano Ronaldo.

The likelihood is that Madrid will give their Portuguese talisman a central role for their trip to Levante. Angel di Maria should continue out wide and Mourinho has numerous options in filling in for Ronaldo with Mesut Ozil, Kaka, Jose Callejon - who shone in the midweek draw with Dortmund - and Luka Modric all available. I don't know about anyone else, but I'm looking forward to seeing Madrid's No.7 play in the No.9 role on Sunday night. The man himself probably won't be, though.

"I do not like playing there, but I must adapt to whatever they ask of me" Ronaldo said of playing the central striker role when Madrid faced Barcelona in the Champions League semi-final in 2011 and lost 2-0. It's not the only time he's played there, however, and it's not always been doom and gloom. Ronaldo started in the same position when Madrid won the Copa del Rey in the same season, scoring the winner in extra-time against Barcelona in Valencia.

His preferences and undoubted ability in playing in his usual position further out wide aside, Ronaldo has all the qualities you need from a world-class No. 9. He's quicker than Benzema and Higuain, meaning he has more of a chance to latch on to through-balls from any of Madrid's creative midfielders, he's better at finishing than Benzema and Higuain - both have missed numerous good chances so far this season - and he has great heading ability - the Copa del Rey winner against Barcelona a case in point.

There's no need to panic this weekend, then. It's going to be tough against Levante, a club affectionately known as 'the frogs', with Benzema and Higuain or without them. Los Blancos suffered a 1-0 defeat in the same fixture last season, with Levante flying high at the top of La Liga early on in the season. They may not have reached those heights this season, but they're certainly continuing to prove their doubters wrong. A 0-0 draw at Sevilla last time out, mainly thanks to a stubborn defensive performance, left them an impressive sixth in the table after ten matches.

The goals don't have to just come from Ronaldo either. As the official Madrid site makes glaringly obvious as its main story - almost trying to alleviate any pressure on Ronaldo before the match has even started - twelve players have already scored for Los Blancos this season. The expected trio of Ronaldo, Benzema and Higuain are joined by di Maria, Pepe, Ozil, Marcelo, Kaka, Jose Rodriguez, Modric, Callejon and Michael Essien with goals in all competitions this term.

Ronaldo's role as a central striker won't be a permanent fixture - the injuries to Benzema and Higuain are only short-term - but I expect it to be a good short-term fix. Who knows, Madrid's leading scorer might even like it and it might allow him the chance to catch up to a certain Leo Messi in the goalscoring stakes this season. That'll certainly put a smile on his, and Madrid's, faces.

Follow me on Twitter @nicholasrigg

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