Gareth Bale ruled out of Wales friendly against the Republic of Ireland

Tottenham winger will remain with the squad to train but will not feature at the Cardiff City Stadium on Wednesday night

Gareth Bale puts Wales in front from the penalty spot against Croatia (PA)

Gareth Bale will not feature against the Republic of Ireland in Wales’ international friendly on Wednesday, a Football Association of Wales spokesman has confirmed.

The Tottenham winger trained on his own at Wales’ Newport training base this afternoon, but his fitness will not be risked as he continues his recovery from a foot injury picked up nearly a month ago.

The Spurs ace has been widely linked with a big-money move to Real Madrid with further reports coming this morning that Manchester United are not yet out of the running for his signature, but any deal for the Welshman looks set to break the current world transfer record – the £80m Real spent on signing current superstar Cristiano Ronaldo from United.

Bale is believed to be concerned that any aggravation to the injury could jeopardise any move this summer, and it has been confirmed that Bale will not feature for Chris Coleman’s side at the Cardiff City Stadium later this week.

Spurs boss Andre Villas-Boas confirmed last weekend that he did not expect Bale to be fit for next week’s Premier League opener against Crystal Palace, but Bale still travelled to Wales to meet up with the rest of the international squad this morning as they prepare to face their Celtic rivals.

Although he won’t participate on Wednesday, Spurs are happy for Bale to remain with the squad as he begins to step-up the intensity of his training, and he will attend the match to cheer on his team-mates.

Bale becomes the third Welsh player to drop out of the squad due to injury after Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey and Aston Villa defender James Collins were forced to pull out with ankle and knee injuries respectively.

Swansea full-back Jazz Richards and Brighton midfielder Andrew Crofts have been called up as replacements.