Gareth Bale future: Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane to put his faith in the Welshman

The Wales forward was omitted from Zidane's squad for a pre-season friendly with RB Salzburg, having also previously missed the club's trip to Germany for the Audi Cup.

That came after the collapse of Bale's proposed transfer to Chinese club Jiangsu Suning amid widespread speculation his six-year stay in Spain was about to end.

Bale reportedly skipped the trip to Germany, where the Spanish giants faced Tottenham and Fenerbahce, as he was furious with his treatment at the hands of Zidane and president Florentino Perez and felt he was not in the right frame of mind to play.

But Zidane now seems to have changed his mind on the Welshman.

He said in a press conference ahead of Real's opening LaLiga match against Celta Vigo, as reported by L'Equipe: "It seemed that (Bale) was going to leave but today he is here with us.

"The dynamics are changing, things are changing. From now on, I will rely on him, as on others.

"I will rely on all the players who are here. He has his place, he is an important player and I hope that all the players will make the task of choosing a team difficult."

Zidane was dealt a blow on the eve of the new season, as summer signing Eden Hazard was ruled out for a few weeks with a thigh injury.

An injury update on Real's official website said: "Following tests carried out after training today, our player Eden Hazard has been diagnosed by the Real Madrid medical team with a lesion in the recto anterior muscle of the left thigh. Pending evaluation."

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