Welsh hopes of scoring an upset over England in this weekend's Euro 2012 qualifier have suffered a major blow after the withdrawal of Gareth Bale with a hamstring injury, reports said.

The Tottenham winger has suffered a recurrence of the injury which had been bothering the player before he joined up with the Wales squad ahead of Saturday's encounter at the Millennium Stadium, the BBC reported.

Bale, 21, sat out of training on Wednesday, the report said, adding that the Football Association of Wales was expected to issue a statement later Thursday.

Bale had only recently returned to action for Spurs after a six-week lay-off with a back injury before being hit with a hamstring problem.

If Bale's injury is confirmed it will deprive Wales of one of their main attacking outlets.

The flying winger has been in outstanding form for Tottenham this season, most notably in the Champions League where he single-handedly destroyed Inter Milan in a victory at White Hart Lane.

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