Riise, who is set to win his 100th cap against the Dragons in Cardiff on Saturday, will face Bale for the second weekend running, having played in Fulham's 3-1 Barclays Premier League home defeat to Tottenham on Sunday.

Bale's recent form for club and country has mirrored that which saw him burst to prominence last season with his hat-trick against Inter Milan in the Champions League, and he has been a key component in Wales' climb from 117th to 45th in the FIFA world rankings.

And Riise believes there is no other left-sided player in the game who compares to the Spurs star.

He said: "There is no doubt about his ability, not only what he did against Inter but the whole of last season he kept going.

"He was scoring goals and providing assists, he works really hard and he is not a big celebrity star, he just gets on with his job and you have to respect that.

"The things he produces are unbelievable. I played against him on Sunday, and when you play against him you have to make him run the other way by attacking yourself, otherwise it will be a one-man game.

"There is no left-sided player better than him at the moment. He has a great left foot, he is strong and quick and can cross. You can think you are going to be close to him and then he just runs past you and scores a goal."

Wales may have won three of their last four games, but they will face a tough test from a Norway side who only missed out on a Euro 2012 play-off place on goal difference.

And former Liverpool defender Riise, who will become just the third Norwegian to make a century of international appearances, hopes he can celebrate his landmark with a win.

"It will be a nice day for myself," he said.

"I have worked hard over 11 years for this. For now I am just focusing on having a good game and hopefully getting a good result.

"I think I am just the third person in Norway to get to 100 but I am here to enjoy myself, the team are looking good, it will be a tough game but hopefully we can win and maybe we can have a little celebration after the game."

Another man likely to line up against Riise will be Liverpool forward Craig Bellamy.

The pair were involved in a fracas during the striker's first stint at Liverpool, which allegedly involved Bellamy confronting Riise with a golf club on a team bonding trip to Portugal in 2007.

But Riise insists the disagreement has long been put behind them.

"What happened in Portugal a few years ago happened," he said.

"That is not the Bellamy I know and we shook hands quite quickly after that and settled it.

"So it is no problem for me. I've always been all right with Craig Bellamy."