Zidane: Ballon d'Or just reward for hero Ronaldo

Portuguese striker scores a hat-trick to help Real sink city rival Atletico

Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane insisted he has no doubt Cristiano Ronaldo will be the deserving winner of a fourth Ballon d'Or come January, but his hat-trick in a 3-0 defeat of Atletico Madrid on Saturday may convince others.

Ronaldo returned to haunt Atletico just five months after scoring the winning penalty in Real's second Champions League victory over their city rival in three seasons.