Real Madrid's Supercopa hopes hit as Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema are ruled out

Out: Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema
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Ben Hayward7 January 2020

Real Madrid's hopes of winning the forthcoming Spanish Supercopa in Saudi Arabia have been hit as both Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale have been ruled out.

"Following tests carried out on Karim Benzema by the Real Madrid Medical Services, he has been diagnosed with a contusion in the semimembranosus muscle of his left hamstring," the club said on their website on Monday.

And in a similar short statement for Bale, Los Blancos revealed that the Welsh winger "has been diagnosed with an infection in the upper respiratory tract".

Neither problem appears to be serious, but the two have been left out of the 23-man list for the Supercopa and their absence means Madrid will be without their three high-profile forwards because Eden Hazard is still sidelined with an ankle injury.

Marcelo, James Rodriguez and Lucas Vazquez are all included in the squad after recovering from injury and training normally since the winter break. None of the three featured in Saturday's 3-0 win at Getafe.

Madrid meet Valencia in the semi-finals of the revamped Supercopa on Wednesday, with the winner to face either Barcelona or Atletico in the showpiece in Jeddah on Sunday.

Bale's absence is considered to be only precautionary and if Los Blancos make the final, he could potentially fly out and link up with his team-mates at the weekend.

Benzema and Bale should both be available when La Liga resumes the following weekend and Real host Sevilla at the Santiago Bernabeu on January 18.

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