Injured forward Gareth Bale to fly in for Wales game

Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale will take a break from his injury recovery when he flies in to watch national side Wales on Friday evening.

The 26-year-old, who has been suffering from a calf strain since mid-October, made a return to action last weekend in Los Blancos' 3-1 defeat to Sevilla.

Bale has been deemed unfit to play a part in Wales's friendly match against the Netherlands this week, which Chris Coleman believes is the correct decision in the long term, but he is still expected to be in attendance at the Cardiff City Stadium.

"He's had a tough time in terms of his injury," BBC Sport quotes the Dragons boss as saying. "It's been a bit stop-start so it's definitely the right move for us to go and Real Madrid.

"We think he will be here for the game. It'll be good to see him. It's all about the player, his well being and make sure he is fit so we've definitely taken the right option there."

Aaron Ramsey, Sam Vokes and Hal Robson-Kanu are among the other absentees from the Wales squad.