MADRID – Real Madrid’s French coach Zinedine Zidane denied on Saturday he had been experiencing one of his worst moments as a manager.

Real Madrid was handed back-to-back defeats against newly promoted Girona in La Liga and Tottenham Hotspur in UEFA Champions League action.

Asked about the criticism Real’s performance had brought upon him, he referred to the remarks he made after winning the Best FIFA Men’s Coach award on Oct. 23.

“I’ve said in the past that I’m not the best coach in the world, the award I got was for the season we had and I accept that. I’m not the best, but neither am I the worst,” he explained at a press conference on the eve of a league game against Las Palmas.

He downplayed Real’s two straight defeats, showing faith in the players’ ability to turn things around and get back on track.

“I don’t think this is the worst spell in my coaching career. Our players have shown they can stand up and be counted with in tough times,” Zidane said.

He revealed that Wales’ forward Gareth Bale and Spain’s right-back Dani Carvajal were expected to be sidelined until the Atletico Madrid match scheduled Nov. 18.

“They won’t feature in the squad list. After having been out for a long time, we have to give them that space they need. Bale won’t be joining up with his national team either. They have completed two training sessions and will stay back and work with us,” he added.