Wales boss Rob Page praised the Real Madrid fans for their "class" after greeting Gareth Bale with a standing ovation at their Champions League title celebrations.
Bale has endured a turbulent spell in the Spanish capital, despite scoring in three Champions League finals for Madrid and winning the competition with Los Blancos on five occasions.
The most recent of those came on Saturday in a 1-0 win over Liverpool, with Bale an unused substitute as Madrid lifted a 14th European Cup, which is more than double any other side.
The Wales international has been much maligned by Madrid fans during his time in Spain, as supporters and the Spanish media have questioned his commitment to the club.
However, Bale's appearance at the Santiago Bernabeu celebrations on Sunday was met with rapturous applause, signalling a fitting end as the 32-year-old prepares to move on when his contract expires in June.
Page expressed his gratitude to Madrid fans for that support after Bale linked up with Wales, who have the Nations League and a crucial World Cup qualifying play-off match to contend with in the next week.
"I thought they showed class and rightly so for what he's achieved for that football club," Page told reporters on Tuesday.
"You look back to what he's done, scoring winners in Champions League finals and in the manner in which he's done it.
"What an achievement for him personally to be a part of that group of people, that team that's achieved that, is phenomenal.
"Not many players can say they've done that, so credit to him. He deserves all the plaudits, absolutely. He's in good spirits as he always is.
"He was adamant he was meeting the players in Portugal to fly to Poland with them, which speaks volumes.
"He wanted to be with the squad as soon as possible. He's as humble as ever, he's met up with the group and he's been first class right away."
Wales face Poland in the Nations League on Wednesday before facing either Scotland or Ukraine for a place in the World Cup in Qatar.
Page suggested he will name a rotated side for the clash in Wroclaw, where Bale, Aaron Ramsey and Brennan Johnson will likely be rested, as Wales eye a first World Cup appearance since 1958.
"It's risk and reward," Page said on selection. "The biggest game we've got is on Sunday and that's no disrespect to Poland whatsoever.
"We're going to show them complete respect, but we'd be mad to jeopardise our top, top players."
Bayern 'really couldn't help' Nagelsmann leak, will 'let Tuchel be Tuchel'
Bayern Munich are adamant they were not at fault as Thomas Tuchel's appointment was reported before previous head coach Julian Nagelsmann had been sacked.
Nagelsmann was said to have learned of his departure through the media while skiing in Austria this week.
The news first broke on Thursday but was not made official for another 24 hours, by which point Tuchel had formally agreed to take the Bayern job.
However, Bayern sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic appeared on SPORT1's STAHLWERK Doppelpass on Sunday and defended the club's position.
"We met [with Tuchel] on Tuesday, had a very good conversation," Salihamidzic said. "And on Wednesday and Thursday, we negotiated with Thomas' managers.
"On Thursday evening, we learned that the information had been leaked by a third party. We really couldn't help it.
"I don't know who that was [behind the leak] – certainly from the other side. We behaved fairly. As fair as you can be in this business.
"The first person we called on Thursday was Julian Nagelsmann. You don't share such a decision on the phone. That's why we met the next day at Sabener Strasse. We waited until there was a commitment from Thomas Tuchel."
Indeed, although the leak looked "bad", the Bayern chief explained why it was not possible to dismiss Nagelsmann before putting a deal in place with Tuchel.
"It came out before Thomas Tuchel agreed, so I wouldn't have been able to call Julian yet," Salihamidzic said.
"I couldn't have told him, 'we're talking to Thomas now, but if he doesn't want to, you'll go ahead'.
"Of course, it's bad that this comes out beforehand, but that's not our fault."
Now, Bayern are looking forward to a future with Tuchel, even if he has had strained relationships with bosses at Borussia Dortmund, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea.
Disputes have often centred around transfer business, but the Bundesliga champions are ready to back Tuchel.
"With Julian Nagelsmann, we entered the transfer market together and discussed everything. We will do the same with Thomas Tuchel," Salihamidzic said.
"The coach's ideas are important, he has to transfer them to the team. We have let Julian be Julian and will also let Thomas Tuchel be Thomas Tuchel."
Man City and England star Foden undergoes appendix surgery
Manchester City attacker Phil Foden has undergone surgery to remove his appendix.
England confirmed the news on Sunday, ruling Foden out of the Euro 2024 qualifier against Ukraine.
City subsequently announced that Foden would definitely miss next Saturday's crucial Premier League clash with Liverpool.
Foden, who came on as a substitute in England's win over Italy on Thursday but lasted only 12 minutes, had been suffering from acute appendicitis.
No firm timescale has been given for the 22-year-old's return, though the UK National Health Service (NHS) guidance recommends at least a two-week recovery period.
Foden has scored 13 goals and provided five assists in 36 appearances for City this season.
WRU governance to be 'improved irrevocably' after membership votes for change
Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) members have voted overwhelmingly in favour of structural change to the governing body.
An extraordinary general meeting was called by the WRU on Sunday, with 282 clubs eligible to vote on proposals to reform how rugby union is run in Wales.
The EGM came after Wales players had threatened to strike ahead of their Six Nations match with England due to contractual disputes, while the organisation has also faced allegations of sexism and misogyny.
Those allegations resulted in the resignation of former chief executive Steve Phillips, with Nigel Walker stepping in on an interim basis.
Of the 252 votes cast at Sunday's EGM, 245 were in favour of the resolution to change the governing structure of the WRU.
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