Why Gareth Bale Is the Real Madrid Player Most in Need of an International Break

He’s got other things on his mind right now, but there will still be a tinge of regret from Gareth Bale when he settles down to watch Wales’ friendly with Northern Ireland on Thursday night.

As a proud Welshman, and a player who—unlike others—has always done everything he can to represent his country, Bale would have wanted to be there in his country's final match on home soil before their historic participation at the Euro 2016 finals in France in the summer.

However, this is one occasion when he’ll be benefiting his side by not being present.

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Wales—who also face Ukraine in Kiev on Monday—rely on their Real Madrid superstar more than anyone else, with Bale scoring seven of their 11 goals during qualification. But his absence, and that of Arsenal’s Aaron Ramsey, will allow manager Chris Coleman to look at players he may be unsure of picking for his final 23.

Bale, too, should be afforded some time at home following the birth of his second daughter, Nava Valentina, on Tuesday—a joyful moment which reminds us that superstar footballers are family men, too, and now is a time for that family.

So where do Real Madrid fit in all this?

With Bale having returned from almost two months out to feature in their last four games—all wins, in which he has scored two of their 15 goals—it might not seem to be a time in which the Welshman needs to rest, but this period could well be crucial given what is to come over the remainder of the season.

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With La Liga glory looking all but out of sight now, it is the UEFA Champions League which offers Real their only real hope of tangible success this season.

The first leg of a winnable quarter-final against Wolfsburg rolls around in the first week of April, just after an El Clasico in which they might not be able to shake up the title race but can at least save some face.

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With Bale spared both the clash with Northern Ireland in Cardiff and the long-haul trip to Kiev shortly afterwards, the Welshman will become a key ingredient in both of those games for Zinedine Zidane.

Bar the odd sleepless night due to his new daughter, he will be fresh and ready to recapture his best form heading into the final months of the season, when he could prove to be the difference between success and failure.

And as well as Real, that will also benefit Wales ahead of their French adventure which includes a huge game against England as well as clashes with Slovakia and Russia.

Given the setup of Coleman’s team—which basically looks to stay compact and then rely on the prodigious gifts of their superstar on the break—any progress they make in the Euros is going to come from Bale quite literally dragging them forward, and this should be seen as a key time in which he can preserve energy for the many battles ahead.

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Real Madrid’s Valdebebas training ground will be a fairly quiet place this week given the amount of superstars the club have away on international duty, but the relative solitude will allow Bale some time to reflect on what is to come.

His persistent, if fairly minor, injuries have been something of a concern this season, but hopefully they are now a thing of the past.

What lies before him is the opportunity to really make an impact for club and country. Having just experienced a huge moment in his personal life, these could be the biggest four months of his professional career.

And if everything goes to plan, do you think anyone will remember him missing a friendly against Northern Ireland?