Benzema out of Real Madrid's trip to Rayo Vallecano

The often-maligned French centre-forward has been in superb form for Madrid since Zinedine Zidane's return as head coach, scoring all of Los Blancos' past eight goals.

Benzema completed 90 minutes in Thursday's 0-0 draw at Getafe – the first time in six matches he failed to find the net – but missed training on Saturday and Madrid confirmed the 31-year-old had suffered a setback.

"Following the tests carried out on our player Karim Benzema by the Real Madrid medical department, he has been diagnosed with a muscular injury to his left biceps femoris," a club statement read.

"His recovery will continue to be assessed."

Although Madrid did not place a timeframe on Benzema's recovery, Zidane told a pre-match news conference that his main striker would be sidelined this weekend.

"We know Karim will not be there, but we will put out a team to try and win the game," he said.

"I won't say how we will play, or the system. We have many options."