Bale asked not to play against City – Zidane

MANCHESTER, England (AP):

Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale asked not to be included in the squad for the Champions League trip to Manchester City, according to coach Zinedine Zidane.

Bale has become a peripheral figure at the Spanish champions after falling out of favour under Zidane.

"It was a personal conversation I had with him," Zidane said. "He preferred not to play. The rest remains between me and him, but he said he didn't want to play."

The 31-year-old Wales international's last appearance for Madrid was on June 24.

Madrid are trying to overturn a 2-1 loss against City from the first leg in February of the pandemic-delayed round of 16.