Gareth Bale has risked feeling the heat from Real Madrid after being late out for the second half of their 2-1 victory over Celta Vigo.
The Welsh superstar, who recently fired his country to a World Cup qualification play-off final with a talismanic performance, was left on the bench for Los Blancos' first La Liga game following the international break.
Alongside Madrid teammate Mariano Diaz, Bale emerged late from the dressing room at the start of the second half, forcing them to trudge down the touchline as play resumed until they made it to the away dugout at the Abanca-Balaidos.
In a potentially fortunate situation for the delayed duo, boss Carlo Ancelotti was not in Vigo after testing positive for Covid-19. The legendary manager, 62, instead allowed his assistant and son, Davide, to take charge. However, Ancelotti's replacement was unable to dish out instructions from the bench and had to remain seated throughout the match due to only holding a UEFA A licence.
The good news was that Real got the job done thanks to two Karim Benzema penalties either side of an equaliser from former Manchester City forward Nolito.
Both Bale and Mariano played no part in the win, having made a combined total of five league starts between them this season.
In particular, Wales captain Bale has made only four La Liga appearances and a further one in the Champions League after spending last term on loan at former club Tottenham Hotspur.
The 32-year-old is less than popular with the Santiago Bernabeu faithful and recently made headlines while on international duty by slamming claims from the Spanish press that he was a "parasite" earning wages of almost £600,000 per week.
Following Wales' 2-1 win against Austria in their play-off semi-final last Thursday, goalscorer Bale took to social media to hit back at the "slanderous, derogatory and speculative journalism." The winger, whose nation will now face either Scotland or Ukraine for a place in Qatar, wrote: "At a time when people are taking their own lives because of the callousness and relentlessness of the media, I want to know, who is holding these journalists and the news outlets that allow them to write articles like this, accountable.
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"Fortunately I have developed a thick skin during my time in the public spotlight, but that doesn't mean articles like these don’t cause damage and upset personally and professionally to those at the receiving end of these malicious stories. I have witnessed the toll the media can take on people’s mental and physical health.
"The media expect superhuman performances from professional athletes, and will be the first to celebrate with them when they deliver, yet instead of commiserating with them when they show an ounce of human error, they are torn to shreds instead, encouraging anger and disappointment in their fans. The everyday pressures on athletes is immense, and it's as clear as day, how negative media attention could easily send an already stressed athlete, or anybody in the public eye over the edge."
Bale has entered the final three months of his contract in Madrid and is set to leave during the summer transfer window, having joined Real from Spurs nine years ago for a then world-record fee of £85million.
