Real Madrid v Bayern Munich: Gareth Bale misses home leg with flu and Cristiano Ronaldo faces late test

All smiles: Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale trained on Tuesday before the latter fell victim to flu

 Carlo Ancelotti, the Real Madrid coach, will be denied the services of winger Gareth Bale against Bayern Munich on Wednesday night and will not risk his top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo if the forward is not 100 per cent fit.

Bale, who is showing some of his best form for Real, is a late withdrawal after falling victim to a flu virus on Tuesday evening.

Ronaldo has hit 14 goals in the Champions League this season but has not featured for Real since hobbling out of the 3-0 win over Borussia Dortmund with a knee injury at the start of the month. That developed into a hamstring problem, which prevented him from playing any part in last week’s Copa del Rey triumph over Barcelona.

The Ballon d’Or holder returned to training on Monday and Ancelotti was pleased with Ronaldo’s progress the day before the semi-final first leg against Pep Guardiola’s Bayern at the Bernabéu.

However, the Italian said: “If there’s any risk of him breaking down again he won’t play. We have to remember that this tie is not going to be decided tomorrow; we may be able to gain an advantage from the home leg, but the really decisive game is next Tuesday in Munich. If everyone is certain he can play without any problems then he will play. I am confident he will play, but we will make the decision tomorrow (today).”
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