Why Bale was abused by Real Madrid fans after latest injury blow?
Gareth Bale has had a love/hate relationship with Real Madrid and their fans during his eight years at the club.
The player moved to Los Blancos for £90 million in 2013 and immediately tried to impress the fans at his press conference with his attempt at addressing them in Spanish.
And it all started so well for Bale at the Santiago Bernabeu, scoring 22 times and assisting 19 times in his first season, including a famous winning solo goal against bitter rivals Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final.
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Just a few weeks later, he was scoring in a Champions League final win over Atletico Madrid.
Bale's relationship with Real Madrid fans
But as the years passed, his relationship with the fans soured and he didn't help himself when, in 2019, he held up a banner that read: "Wales, golf, Real Madrid - in that order," following Wales qualification for Euro 2020.
The sign was apparently in response to his lack of game time under then-manager Zinedine Zidane.
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[/centre]A reminder for Real Madrid fans that Gareth Bale won them a Champions League.
They should love him. pic.twitter.com/tAlbobiAjw— Cymru Watch 🏴 (@CymruWatch) November 20, 2021
And on his return to Madrid, the partisan home crowd at the Bernabeu let their feelings known to Bale, booing his name when read out to the stadium and then booing his every touch when he came on as a substitute.
The player has never really recovered from that incident and spent last season on loan at Tottenham.
Fans shouting abuse
And it seems supporters of Madrid are still not happy with the Welshman after a video emerged of fans shouting and swearing at him as he left the Valdebebas training ground in his car on Friday.
"F*** you," was yelled by one supporter with reports they are unhappy that Bale returned from Wales duty with another injury.
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[/centre]🚨| Gareth Bale got insulted by the fans today after the training session. A fan threw a marker at his window. @SQuirante
pic.twitter.com/4KltOMS42n— Blancos Central (@BlancosCentral) November 19, 2021
Bale began this season under new manager Carlo Ancelotti well, starting the first three league games in La Liga and scoring in a 3-3 draw with Levante.
A knee injury then curtailed his bright start to the campaign. However, he then travelled with the Wales squad during both international breaks.
And with his return to the club bringing with it a new injury, the Madrid fans still hold a grudge that the Wales captain puts his country before their club.
Why do fans not like Bale?
Bale is the highest earner at Real Madrid on €37m (£32m) with his contract due to expire in June 2022.
At 32 years old now, it's unlikely that Bale will stay on a Madrid past next summer.
Real fans have never really gotten over the infamous banner and will feel he is stealing a living at their club they feel he doesn't care for as much as he does his country.
