Injured Bales ruled out of Wales-Ireland friendly

LONDON - Wales midfielder Gareth Bale will not play against Ireland in a friendly on Wednesday due to a foot problem that has troubled him since mid-July, said assistant manager Kit Symons.

Bale joined up with the squad despite being sidelined since picking up the injury in a pre-season friendly for his club Tottenham Hotspur and had a light training session on Monday.

However, Symons told Sky Sports News there was no chance of Bale playing against the Irish at the Cardiff City Stadium.

Real are willing to pay a world record transfer fee of more than 85 million pounds ($131.58 million) for the 24-year-old English Footballer of the Year, according to media reports, although the Spurs have repeatedly said he is not for sale.

Asked if the hordes of Spanish journalists at the new Wales training facility at Dragon Park were a problem, Symons said: “I don’t think it will be a distraction. They only want to talk to Gareth and we know Gareth won’t be featuring on Wednesday night, so I don’t think it will affect the group at all.” Reuters