Gareth Bale could be set for a longer spell on the sidelines than first feared following on from his ankle surgery in London on Tuesday.
AS report the surgery showed damage sustained on the ankle was worse than initially thought which could leave the Welsh forward missing up to four months of action, with a return to the pitch rescheduled for April.
The 27-year-old former Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur could now potentially miss 25 matches for Real Madrid and also now is likely to be unavailable for Wales' World Cup qualifier against Republic of Ireland in March.
Bale could miss up to 14 further league games for the club and the last 16 of the Champions League along with the Club World Cup and the rest of the Copa Del Rey campaign, should Madrid not make the fina.
