Cristiano Ronaldo has mocked Real Madrid team-mate James Rodriguez's new haircut, branding the attacking midfielder's fresh style "ugly".

A smiling James proudly posted an Instagram photo on Wednesday, reealing his new hairdo which features blonde highlights as he posed holding a football in casual clothing.

The Colombia international's image has racked up over one million likes and more than 8,000 comments.

One of those, though, came from Madrid star Ronaldo, who wrote in Portuguese: "Ugly hair."

Ronaldo himself has had a string of different hairstyles over his career, most recently opting to shave his head after winning the Champions League.

James and the Portugal international, who is at the Confederations Cup in Russia with his country, face uncertain futures at Madrid.

Blockbuster reports claimed last week Ronaldo wants to leave Santiago Bernabeu amid scrutiny of his tax affairs, the 32-year-old denying an allegation that he defrauded Spanish authorities out of €14.7million.

James, meanwhile, was left out of Zinedine Zidane's squad for the Champions League final, the culmination of a season in which his first-team action was limited.