As Real Madrid take on Manchester City on Friday night for the chance to play in the Champions League quarter-finals, they will have one notable admission.
Gareth Bale has long since been counted upon by Zinedine Zidane, and the latest shot across the bows from the Frenchman was to leave the Welsh flyer out of his match day squad entirely.
It’s clear that the manager/player relationship has broken down, and considering just two seasons ago, he was the match-winner in Kiev thanks to his two goals including an overhead kick that was arguably better than Zidane’s volley against Bayer Leverkusen back in 2002, it’s an incredibly speedy fall from grace.
Rather than sit at home twiddling his thumbs, however, Bale has risked the wrath of the club’s hierarchy and supporters again by taking to the golf course to unwind.
?? IMAGEN EXCLUSIVA @elchiringuitotv ??
?? Mientras Zidane da la charla en Mánchester, BALE juega al GOLF en Madrid. #JUGONES pic.twitter.com/5DMYtPWOGG
— El Chiringuito TV (@elchiringuitotv) August 7, 2020
Exclusive pictures (shown above) obtained by El Chiringuito TV, and cited by the Daily Star, show the player putting away, whilst his team-mates will have been getting ready to travel to England.
The disrespect shown by both sides is unpalatable and the situation shows no signs of changing with Bale seemingly happy to stay in Madrid and take his wages each week.