Real Madrid manager insists Gareth Bale is valued at the club

Gareth Bale has found himself in the headlines in recent weeks despite the fact that he has not been playing much due to injury. Wales surprisingly called him up for the upcoming international break, raising some eyebrows. However, Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has expressed his support for the call-up.

It should be noted that Ancelotti has not included Bale in his squad for Real Madrid's match against Rayo Vallecano on Saturday. However, he has clarified that the club's medical team has indeed confirmed that the Welshman has recovered from his injury.

"The player has a medical discharge and can train," said Ancelotti, explaining why Los Blancos approved the player's upcoming trip to join his national team. "We cannot tell Wales that he can't play, because there is objective data. There is a scan that says he has recovered," said Ancelotti, before explaining that there is also no guarantee that Bale will in fact play after being assessed by the Welsh medical team.

He said that Real Madrid will provide Wales with the information they have on the player's status and a decision will eventually be made by the national team pending their own evaluation.

He then went on to speak about Bale's current slump and reminded everyone about the player's contributions to the club. "Firstly, I'm not his father. It may be that Bale's last period was not good, but nobody forgets what Bale has done. In 2014 he helped us win the Champions League, the Copa del Rey, [and then] the Champions League against Liverpool," he said, looking back at his own first stint in charge of the Bernabeu.

The Italian then went on to say that he is still willing to let Bale play if he comes back fit and ready after the international break. "He is not having his best spell, but we have to have faith. When he comes back from the national team, if he deserves to play, he will play," he said.

Bale had in fact featured for Real Madrid earlier this season and showed flashes of his old form before picking up another injury. It remains to be seen if he will be able to make meaningful contributions in the remaining months of the season.