James and Isco are Real Madrid's future, not Benitez

Atletico, Barcelona, Sevilla, Villarreal and now Valencia. Rafa Benitez is still struggling against the top teams in La Liga and has failed to beat any of those rivals since joining Real Madrid in the summer. And to make matters worse, he left both Isco and James Rodriguez on the bench at Mestalla on Sunday.

Benitez led Valencia to two Liga titles in 2002 and 2004 and was greeted by a banner which read: "Rafa, you gave us the best years of our lives. Thank you!" It was a touching tribute, but it is safe to say the 55-year-old remains more popular at Mestalla than he is in Madrid these days.

The Real boss left Isco on the bench once again after failing to give the Spain midfielder a single minute in the 3-1 win at home to Real Sociedad last Wednesday and he also dropped James Rodriguez after the Colombia playmaker was caught speeding and pursued all the way to training by police in Madrid on Friday.

Croatian midfielder Mateo Kovacic started instead and did very well, but ultimately left his side in a sticky situation after he scythed down Joao Cancelo and was shown a straight red card with a little over 20 minutes still left on the clock.

By that time, Madrid had already thrown away a lead they had fought so hard to obtain, when Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema combined beautifully for the latter to convert. The BBC was back in business, but it didn't last long as Valencia came back into the game and levelled with a penalty just before the interval.

Moments earlier, Bale should have received a spot-kick at the other end. Madrid had benefitted from two contentious calls to win penalties against Real Sociedad, but they were out of luck this time and as against Atletico earlier this term, they had allowed their rival a way back into the game when it should have been under control.

A man down, Madrid went ahead again through a Bale header but could not hang on as Paco Alcacer levelled a minute later and there were chances at both ends in a frenetic finale. Given the circumstances of the match, it was not a bad result for Real - but once again Los Blancos fail to gain ground on Barcelona or Atletico at the top of the table. It's not good enough.

Asked afterwards if his coach still has credit at Real, Sergio Ramos said: "Yes, I think so. It doesn't depend on us, but whoever is here has the full support of the players."

It is the type of question being put to the team with alarming regularity now and all the while, James and Isco stayed on the bench as Benitez kept faith with the players on the pitch before bringing on Lucas Vazquez for Benzema once Kovacic had been sent off.

James is considered as a natural heir to Ronaldo by many in Madrid and the Colombian is unlikely to be happy at his reduced role, while Isco is a fan favourite who is now in talks with Manchester City amid frustration at being constantly overlooked by Benitez.

"For the effort that the team made, they deserve praise more than anything else," the former Liverpool manager said when asked if he feared for his job.

Meanwhile, many Madrid fans would be happy to see him stay behind in Valencia. And if Isco and James start to seriously consider their futures at the Santiago Bernabeu as the transfer window opens this week, Rafa's rating will fall further.

Whatever does happen, it seems almost impossible Benitez will last longer than a sole season - if indeed he hangs on for that long - and president Florentino Perez should seriously consider the damage to two of the club's prized players. Because James and Isco should both be part of Madrid's future. And Rafa, it now seems pretty clear, is not.