Gareth Bale was full of praise for Cristiano Ronaldo.

  The striker opened the scoring for his nation as they advanced into the final, and his club team-mate could not help but praise his performance after the match

Gareth Bale hailed Real Madrid colleague Cristiano Ronaldo as a "natural goalscorer" after he netted in Portugal's 2-0 Euro 2016 semi-final win overWales.

The showdown between the two Madrid heavyweights dominated the pre-match headlines and it was Ronaldo who shone brightest.

His powerful 50th-minute header saw him equal Michel Platini's record of nine European Championship goals, with Ronaldo then turning provider – albeit perhaps inadvertently – for Nani's goal three minutes later.

And Bale told ITV of his club-mate: "Obviously he's a natural goalscorer and he scored yet again.

"But as I said it's not about them, it's about us. We'll pick ourselves up. We're a proud bunch. We have to be proud of what we've achieved in this tournament.

"We want to thank all the fans obviously – the support we have had is absolutely incredible."

Wales were at least the equal of their opponents in a tight first half and Bale reflected on what he felt were fine margins that decided the outcome.

"They got their first goal and were lucky on the second," he added. "We tried our hardest to get back into the game and fought until the last second.

"We gave everything. We have no regrets."

Fernando Santos' side will meet hosts France or world champions Germany in the final.

Portugal vs Wales & Ronaldo vs Bale.

Wales and Portugal are set to contest the first Euro 2016 semi-final at Stade de Lyon in France on Wednesday evening.

All eyes will be on Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo as the Real Madrid superstars go head-to-head, and with a spot in the final at stake, it has all the ingredients for a blockbuster clash.

Chris Coleman's side, who have reached the semi-final of a major tournament for the first time in their history, come up against a Portugal team yet to win in normal time this summer.

Ahead of the big match in Lyon, Sportsmail takes a glance at where it could be won or lost.

When Portugal and Wales collide in the semi-finals of the European Championship on Wednesday night, the tie will pitch two of the biggest stars in world football against one another.

But not only are they among the biggest names on the globe, both Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo have spent the past three years slugging it out to be the big dog at Real Madrid.

And a man who has managed the pair of them together admits that they are so competitive that they always wanted to beat each other in training.