Carlo Ancelotti tells Manchester United: 'Gareth Bale will not be leaving'

£86m Welshman has been linked with a move to United

Gareth Bale shoots during Real Madrid's 4-2 friendly defeat by AC Milan this week (GETTY IMAGES)

Carlo Ancelotti has insisted that Gareth Bale is one of Real Madrid's "most important players" and he will not be sold.

The Welshman, who joined the Spanish giants for a world-record £86m in 2013, has been linked with a £120m transfer to Manchester United in recent weeks, but Ancelotti says he will be going nowhere. Real's president, Florentino Perez, said yesterday that Bale would never leave the club, and his manager has backed up the claim.

"He's one of our most important players and he won't be leaving. There are no problems, rumours or questions," he told reporters in Dubai, where Real lost 4-2 to AC Milan in a friendly.

"This defeat doesn't hurt at all. We've had a week to prepare, physically we're OK. It's helped us to recover our rhythm after a week of holidays," he continued.

"We did what we had to - we made an effort in which everyone had 45 minutes. Now we'll rest for a day and then have two to prepare for the game at Mestalla [against Valencia].