Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale return to Real Madrid training

Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale have returned to Real Madrid training, handing Zinedine Zidane a timely boost ahead of Wednesday's La Liga clash at home to Villarreal.

The attacking duo were absent for Sunday's trip to Espanyol, but they were not missed as goals from James Rodriguez and Karim Benzema sealed a record-equalling 16th consecutive La Liga victory.

Speaking at his pre-match press conference on Tuesday, Zidane confirmed: "They are fine. They have trained normally. The two of them are 100 percent."

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Ronaldo has been restricted to just two appearances in all competitions for the European champions after injuring his knee in the Euro 2016 final.

He was ruled out of the trip to the Estadi Cornella-El Prat with flu, while Bale was nursing a hip injury he sustained in Tuesday's dramatic Champions League victory over Sporting Lisbon.

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Both, however, are expected to be available for Zidane when Villarreal travel to the Bernabeu.

Having matched the 16-game winning streak Pep Guardiola's Barcelona achieved in 2010/11, Real will be looking to go one better, while, at the same time, extending their impressive start to the season.

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With Barca and Atletico Madrid playing each other on Wednesday, even at this early stage of the season, a fifth-straight victory could strengthen Real's claim to a first Primera Division crown in five seasons.

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