Thursday 18 February 2016 00:41, UK
How much are Gareth Bale's injury problems costing Real Madrid?
Two goals from Cristiano Ronaldo helped Real to a 4-2 win at home to Athletic Bilbao on Saturday, a victory which moved them to within four points of leaders Barcelona.
However, Barca have a game in hand on Zinedine Zidane's side and Real will head to Roma for their Champions League knockout tie on Wednesday once again without the injured Bale.
The Welshman has not played since suffering a calf problem against Sporting Gijon on January 17 and has missed 58 days so far this season with injury.
In 2015/16, Bale has played just 1,164 minutes out of a possible 2,160 in La Liga, and 102 minutes of a possible 540 in the Champions League.
In contrast, Ronaldo has played every minute of every league and Champions League game.
"He needs time and we need to be patient because we need Gareth to be 100 per cent fit," Real boss Zidane said last week, when he revealed the player would likely miss their Champions League trip to Italy.
"If he is feeling pain then it is to be expected that he might suffer a setback. Gareth is such an important player for us that we are not going to take any risks."
Adding to the frustration for Bale and Real is the fact the former Spurs man has been remarkably effective when he's been fit and firing.
Bale has scored 13 times in the league this season - only Karim Benzema (21) and Cristiano Ronaldo (19) have managed more for the club - and no Real Madrid player has bettered his total of eight assists.
However, Bale's injury problems at Real Madrid have not been limited to this season. The Wales ace has been affected by a number of injuries since his 2013 switch to the Bernabeu.
We take a look at his injuries below...
