Wales manager Chris Coleman has urged "devastated" forward Gareth Bale to remain patient after being ruled out indefinitely with a fresh thigh injury.
The Real Madrid star broke down in training earlier this week and is unlikely to feature again in an injury-plagued 2017 - his 19th layoff in four years at the Bernabeu.
Reports in the Spanish press suggest that Bale was rushed back ahead of schedule, as Zinedine Zidane was keen to get him back for next weekend's showdown with city rivals Atletico Madrid.
Coleman insists that the 28-year-old cannot afford to push his body too far, however, telling reporters: "I don't know the full extent of it. He'll be devastated. We haven't had dialogue with Real Madrid, but we'll speak with Gareth in the next few days and find out exactly what it is. It's bad luck, bad news, and he'll be gutted.
"The harder you try to get back you get a setback and sometimes you have to go through that. He'll get over and he'll be back. He just needs to get settled again and get his fitness. He needs to take his time and not rush himself back.
"Some players as they get older they change their schedule. That's up to him and Real Madrid. When he's with us all our players have different programmes at different times of the week because we know what they do with their clubs. We have to make sure we taper that in with the way we work."
Bale last featured for Madrid in their 3-1 win over Borussia Dortmund on September 26, missing 11 games for club and country since then.
Daniel Lewis
