Zinedine Zidane Set to Throw Gareth Bale Back into Starting XI for Celta Vigo Game

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane is preparing to throw Gareth Bale back into his squad's starting lineup in a bid to kick his team back into action, according to reports.

Los Blancos' 3-0 Clasico defeat to fierce rivals Barcelona was humiliating to say the least, and as Barca subsequently drift further out of reach of the reigning Spanish champions, Cristiano Ronaldo and Co are left 14 points away from the Catalan club (albeit with a game in hand).

In a bid to finally fix his side's season, Zidane - according to Marca - will turn to injury prone Welshman, Gareth Bale.

The former Tottenham winger has spent a huge amount of time on the sidelines in the last couple of years, but has always maintained a high level of performance whenever he has been unusually fully fit.

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And now, having returned from injury and being eased back into game time (appearing as a substitute in Madrid's last three games), Real's next La Liga game against Celta Vigo on January 7 will definitely see the once world's most expensive player start, according to the report.

This could come in any form. Should Bale start alongside Karim Benzema and Ronaldo, it would see the trio of BBC start a match together for the first time in eight months.

However, with Isco in the frame, it might be that Zidane chooses to drop Benzema in order to utilise the creative influences of both the Spaniard and the Welshman.

Either way, it appears the Madrid boss has become so desperate to fix his stumbling squad, that he's willing to pin his hopes on a player that may not even be fit by the time the Vigo match comes around.