Gareth Bale is, to put it mildly, a hero of Welsh football. His brilliance, which was once again on full display during the 2-1 win over Austria on Thursday night, has set him above so many of his peers, elevating him to the status of a once-in-a-generation talent.
And yet, he remains the source of grave frustration, anger and, in some cases, outright hatred in some corners in Spain. On the day of what was one of his biggest games in a Wales shirt, one Spanish outlet labelled him a 'parasite' in what was arguably the most stinging attack on yet on the winger.
But why is Bale such a disliked figure in Spain? We asked Spain-based freelance football writer Jamie Kemble for a full lowdown.
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It's been a week of heavy criticism for Gareth - how would you sum up the mood in Spain towards him at the moment? How has it come to this?
I think it's important to point out that the 'parasite' comment was made by particular columnist rather than an actual newspaper. From my point of view as someone who works in the media, I don't think they should have published that story. It was just a targeted piece that has no place in what we do.
But this relationship has been getting more sour by the year, perhaps by the month. Gareth's previously stayed away from it. Perhaps it would have helped if he'd engaged with it at an earlier stage. Then again, I thought his response was totally warranted, if someone called me a parasite, I wouldn't take particularly well to it! Certainly not if I'd achieved what Gareth has. He's done brilliant things at Real Madrid, single-handedly winning games that have won them titles, Champions League etc.
He may be paid too much now based on his recent efforts, but that contract was also a reward for what he brought Real Madrid. You could probably argue he was actually underpaid for the prize money alone that he earned the club. He certainly demands more respect.
My expectation is that history will tell the truth on his time at Real. Madrid cannot tell the story of what has been one of their most successful eras without mentioning his name. The bitterness in the press will die down after he's left, and history will shine a light on what he's achieved.
Are there two sides to this story, and is Gareth worthy of some of the responsibility?
I don't think he's blameless. As a Welsh fan growing up, I would have probably been like every other Welsh fan, because you absolutely should back your players. But as someone who covers Spanish football I do see it from both sides.
Make no mistake, he's actually been available for the last couple of weeks. He came in and started in a striker role for Villarreal. While he didn't manage to score, he did play very well, creating a number of chances. With (Karim) Benzema out, Real turned to him in that game because they had no other option. They played (Marco) Asensio there the week before and he was very poor. So they turned to Bale. He played well and then found himself back on the bench.
He's been professional in making himself available, so he's doing the minimum that he can do at least to earn the money that he's being paid, which is a reward for the titles he's brought Real Madrid in the past. That kind of vicious attack is nothing short of a disgrace.
But I certainly think he might have been better off engaging with the media a little bit more. Writers and journalists tend to look after people who tend to give them stories or engage with them. Of course, he could have maybe thrown himself into Spanish life a little bit more, but that's up to him. He's certainly not the first foreign player to go to another country and not really want to live in that country's culture.
It doesn't come naturally, moving from the UK to Spain. Eating at different times and doing all the things Spanish people do, but perhaps it could have helped.
If he's been available, why hasn't Bale seen more game-time?
That's the million dollar question. When he started the first three games of the season we thought that he would rekindle his relationship with (Carlo) Ancelotti. I've not got any inside information on this, but looking from the outside, and seeing how he played against Villarreal and the way he's been resisted by Ancelotti, I feel like this is something from upstairs. That's just speculation on my part, but it does feel that way at this moment in time.
They know he's coming to the end of his contract and they won't turn to him unless they absolutely need to. This could be a case of Real Madrid maybe having a quiet word with Ancelotti saying 'don't use him unless you absolutely need to'. That's not to say Gareth should be starting every week, but he certainly warrants more of an involvement than he's had.
Why on earth is Gareth still there?
It's an interesting question. There's certainly an element of him happy receiving the money he's being paid. I don't begrudge any player who does that. People will say that he should go and get regular football, but he's earned this money from what he's achieved. Players have a short career in relative terms and they should go pick up as money as they can to look after their families.
I think he's relatively happy with Spanish life, although I don't think he's taken to Spanish life wholeheartedly in terms of the stereotypical aspects. But I think he's happy with the lifestyle he has and he's happy to be there. It's a big PR storm when you're at a club like Real Madrid and in some ways the last Champions League he won for Real Madrid probably did him no favours.
If that final hadn't have happened, Real would probably have let him go in 2019. But when he did what he did with the bicycle kick in Kyiv, the optics of letting him go weren't very good. If they'd let him got on the back of that and he'd gone on to do well elsewhere that would have been a big problem for them. For Bale it made more sense to just continue where he was and try and kick on.
Will he ever play for Real again?
As we stand here today, Real don't want to use him unless they have to. They want to win this sort of war without him having another say or a chance to prove people wrong. Bale will obviously want the chance, but at this point he'll probably take some pleasure in frustrating some of the people around Real and the media by seeing out the season, which he has no choice but to do anyway.
I don't know what this Wales performance does for him. It'll be interesting for the rest of the season. Real have been on a bit of a wobble lately, losing El Clasico 4-0. If they were to go down that sort of form, and some of the payers in his position struggle, there will surely be people asking if Bale can do a better job. I think if he stays fit he might get a couple of games, but I don't see him coming in to start.
What's likely to happen this summer?
He's such an enigmatic character. He doesn't give anything away in terms of what he wants for the future and he's been careful not to. The talk in Spain is that he'll retire if Wales don't make the World Cup, but I don't see that just yet. I think he's got a little bit more to give. It depends how much he misses home.
But you do wonder if he does want to go back to the UK. MLS would be a good fit in terms of lifestyle, he could go to play some brilliant golf on the coast down in Florida, while the demands are less than that of La Liga or the Premier League. I don't see him retiring. That would be a shock to me. And as much as it would be great, I don't see him signing for Cardiff City any time soon, either!
He will carry on if Wales qualify, it's just a question of where. It'll be an interesting summer narrative and a lot of Welsh fans will look forward to the answer.
