Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho has revealed that he dropped Iker Casillas from his starting lineup against Malaga because of "technical" reasons.

The 31-year-old goalkeeper was replaced by Antonio Adan for the La Liga game at La Rosaleda which ended in a 3-2 defeat for the defending Spanish champions.

"It was a technical decision, the coach's decision," Mourinho told reporters. "It is the coach who analyses the situation and the players who are available, and then the coach chooses his team to play.

"It is a purely technical decision. You (the journalists) can invent the stories you want, but it is a technical decision, nothing more. In my opinion, Adan is better than Iker at the moment."

It was the first time since 2002 that Casillas was dropped from a Madrid lineup for 'competitive' reasons.