Wales boss Ryan Giggs admitted he couldn’t risk Gareth Bale in the friendly win over Trinidad and Tobago on Wednesday night.
The Real Madrid superstar was absent as Ben Woodburn’s 90th minute goal handed the Welsh victory in Wrexham.
Fans were left disappointed at not seeing Bale – who watched on from the stands – in action, as Wales played an international at the Racecourse Ground for the first time in over a decade.
When asked if he could understand the frustrations of the fans at not seeing the 29-year-old in action, Giggs responded: “Yes I can.
(Image: Action Images via Reuters)
“Originally when I planned the game, it was going to be a first half and then we’d make changes.
“But Brooks took a knock to the ankle at the weekend, Harry Wilson and Connor Roberts have played a lot of games and Aaron [Ramsey] had a knock.”
Bale suffered an ankle injury as Los Blancos crashed out of the Champions League at the hands of Ajax earlier this month.
But he returned to action in Zinedine Zidane’s first game back at the club over the weekend, scoring his side’s second goal in a 2-0 win over Celta Vigo.
(Image: REUTERS)
“It was Gareth’s first full 90 minutes in three months at the weekend,” continued Giggs.
“He took part in a little bit of training yesterday and trained this morning really well but it was just too much of a risk with Sunday in mind and that was the case with a few of the players.
“I gave the chance for players to push forward for selection on Sunday and also kept a lot of players fresh.
“We’ve got this advantage in the first game. Slovakia play on Thursday and then again on Sunday afternoon. It’s a two-and-a-half day turnaround so I wanted to make sure that we made that advantage count this week, both physically and mentally preparing for the game.
“It’s disappointing for the fans. They want to see the likes of Gareth but it’s also my job to make sure that we are ready for Sunday.”
