Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has admitted that Friday's La Liga clash with Almeria was "difficult" despite the visitors running out 4-1 winners.

Almeria matched their more illustrious opponents for long spells of the match, but a late double from Cristiano Ronaldo added gloss to the scoreline.

"Almeria fought hard and posed us problems, but eventually our quality came through. In any case, the match was difficult," he told reporters.

"They fought hard and pushed us. We failed to put some passes together and didn't find it easy to keep possession."

Real Madrid have now won their last 20 games in all competitions.