Zidane leaves Bale out of Real Madrid squad for City tie

Madrid, Aug. 6 (IANS): Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane has sent another clear message to Gareth Bale that he has no future at the club when he left the striker out of his 24-man squad for the return leg of their last 16 Champions League tie away to Manchester City.

Neither Bale nor James Rodriguez make the squad for the game in which Madrid need to overturn the 2-1 defeat they suffered in the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in the first leg before the competition was suspended due to the coronavirus, reports Xinhua news agency.

Zidane’s decision comes after Bale played in just two of Madrid’s 11 LaLiga games following the return of the competition in June and sat on the sidelines for their last seven games of the domestic campaign, while others such as Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo moved ahead of him in the pecking order.

The move makes it clear once again that Bale has no part in Zidane’s plans for the team, but with two years still remaining on his contract, the 31-year-old has so far resisted all attempts to push him out.

Eden Hazard does make the squad despite doubts about his ankle injury, while club captain, Sergio Ramos also travels despite being suspended for Friday night’s match.

Full squad:

Goalkeepers: Courtois, Areola and Altube.

Defenders: Carvajal, Militao, Varane, Nacho, Marcelo, Mendy and Javi Hernandez.

Midfielders: Kroos, Modric, Casemiro, Valverde and Isco.Forwards: Hazard, Benzema, Lucas Vazquez, Jovic, Asensio, Brahim, Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo.