Zinedine Zidane: Gareth Bale is a key player

Real Madrid head boss Zinedine Zidane says he is relying Gareth Bale this season as he is "key player" in his plans at the Bernabeu. 

The Welshman failed to make an impact during Sunday night's 2-2 draw with Valencia. 

The emergence of Marco Asensio has led to pressure on Bale, and it has been reported that Manchester United could make a late move for the Welshman before the end of the month.

Zidane, however, has said that his team still "rely" on the 28-year-old.

"He's a key player in the squad," Zidane told reporters.

"Gareth is Gareth. We keep working hard and we rely on Gareth, just as is the case with the other players.

"Gareth's situation is good. He had scoring opportunities but did not convert them. We're going to keep working on this. I can't criticise my players, quite the contrary. I'm very happy with their work."