Bale has come off early in two of last three Madrid games and missed the third. If you're questioning his commitment here you're from the Chris Sutton school of commentators.

Would it be a bad thing if he played a more restricted role going forward? We want him at his best for competitive games and, because of nations league, we now have more than ever before. He also wants to secure his personal legacy and I'm right behind that too.

Why do Walesonline give so much oxygen to Sutton'eque reports? They asked over the summer how they could fit more Welsh League content in and surely crap articles being removed is the answer.