It was a disappointing end to Wales’ Euro 2020 campaign, as they surrendered to Denmark in their Round of 16 battle.
A lot was expected of talisman, Gareth Bale, and there was precious little to be excited about as far as the Welshman was concerned.
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When the time came for him to inspire his side, he was found wanting. An inspirational leader he was not.
Indeed, his lack of anything approaching a captain’s contribution was noticed by talkSPORT’s Tony Cascarino amongst others.
The pundit compared Bale’s application to that of his former Real Madrid colleague, Cristiano Ronaldo.
“I don’t think there’s going to be any Welsh player that’s going to shout at Gareth Bale during the game and I think the manager’s made it quite clear he’s going to leave him on,” he said on talkSPORT, cited by the Daily Star.
“You get why because he’s a threat when he has the ball. When he hasn’t got the ball, I’ll ask you one question Nat.
“Who do you think works harder without the ball, Gareth Bale or Cristiano Ronaldo? You mentioned the goal earlier on, the one against Germany.
“Where he headers it away from a corner and sprints 90 yards to get to the other end in 12 seconds to get on the end of something.”
It’s certainly a worthy comparison to make, given that it’s arguably not the first time that Bale has been cited for a lack of effort.
Though Wales’ elimination can’t all be pinned on his shoulders of course, when he needed to step up he was nowhere to be seen.
That has to be the end of him in the national side, even if he chooses to stay on.