Bale in doubt for Real clash

28 March 2011 13:02

Tottenham winger Gareth Bale could miss the first leg of his side's Champions League quarter-final with Real Madrid with a hamstring strain.

The 21-year-old sustained the injury on international duty with Wales and went for a scan on Monday to determine the severity of the problem.

The scans showed that Bale had suffered a grade one strain, which could keep him out for seven to 10 days, which will rule him out of Saturday's trip to Wigan and for Tuesday's visit to Madrid.

"Gareth has returned to Spurs Lodge and took part in controlled straight-line running so we could assess him," a Tottenham statement read.

"We sent him for an ultrasound scan examination this afternoon and that has confirmed the presence of a minor grade one hamstring strain."

"Gareth has reported no pain or stiffness after taking part in the running this morning and we shall continue to monitor him and see how he responds to his conditioning programme throughout the week."

A club versus country row occurred over the injury, with Wales claiming that he was injured before he arrived, a suggestion that was refuted by Tottenham's head of medical services, Wayne Diesel.

"He was passed fit to train by the FAW medical team and it was only after 40 minutes of his first training session on Tuesday, which included some high intensity runs, Gareth complained of tightness in his right hamstring and was pulled out of the remainder of the session as a precaution," Diesel said.

"We requested the player be sent immediately for a scan which subsequently revealed the hamstring strain that forced his withdrawal from the squad."

Bale has missed plenty of football in recent times, with a back injury sustained against Newcastle in January restricting his involvement in the second half of the season.

He made his first start in two months on March 19 when Tottenham were held to a 0-0 draw by West Ham United.