Gareth Bale Caught Laughing at Real Madrid’s £150M Flop As Carlo Ancelotti Sends Him Back to the Bench

Gareth Bale Caught Laughing at Real Madrid’s £150M Flop As Carlo Ancelotti Sends Him Back to the Bench

Babajide Orevba
updated at April 12, 2023 at 7:55 PM
In this article:
Eden Hazard logo
E.Hazard
-FBelgium logo
Gareth Bale logo
G.Bale
-FWales logo
  • Eden Hazard and Gareth Bale were unused substitutes in Real Madrid’s loss to Athletic Bilbao as Los Blancos crash out of the Copa del Rey
  • Hazard had been told to warm up for the game, however, coach Carlo Ancelotti later ordered the player to return to the bench
  • Bale was spotted laughing at the former Chelsea man who looked disappointed as he made way into the dugout

Despite warming up on the sidelines during their Copa del Rey clash with Athletic Bilbao, Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti ordered the £150million signing of 2019, Eden Hazard, to return to the bench, Daily Mail reports.

Gareth Bale was spotted laughing at the former Chelsea star as he looked disappointed that he won’t be part of the encounter.

Hazard has flopped since he joined Los Blancos from Stamford Bridge, but was told to prepare to come on as a sub against Bilbao.

Eden Hazard
Eden Hazard was an unused substitute in Real Madrid's loss to Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey. Photo: David Bustamante
Source: Getty Images

Having prepared to come on as a substitute, Hazard looked baffled as he trudged back to the dugout in his training bib; a scene that saw Gareth Bale laugh.

Bale suffers same fate at Santiago Bernabeu

The Welshman was also an unused substitute in that encounter as the former Tottenham star has failed to play a match for them since August - making just three appearances all season long.

The clip was revealed by Spanish TV station El Chiringuito - who has previously been heavily critical of both Hazard and Bale over their performances and commitment to life in Madrid.

Ancelotti sent Hazard back to the bench in the 75th minute of the game - opting to bring on teenager Eduardo Camavinga instead just moments later for Toni Kroos.

How Athletic Bilbao defeated Real Madrid

Meanwhile, Athletic Bilbao are through to the last four of the Copa del Rey as they knocked Real Madrid out thanks to a stunning winner late in the game on Thursday, February 3.

Alex Berenguer got the decisive goal in the 89th minute as Bilbao continued their dream run in the competition this season.

With the game meandering towards a draw, substitute Berenguer cut inside and drilled an impressive strike past the Real Madrid goalkeeper to stun Carlo Ancelotti’s men.

Aubameyang confirms he had problems with Arteta

Sports Brief earlier reported that ousted Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has disclosed that he never meant to do anything wrong, adding that manager Mikel Arteta was his problem.

The Gabonese who joined Spanish club Barcelona on transfer deadline day disclosed this during his unveiling at the Spanish club.

Aubameyang captained the Gunners until December when he was stripped of the armband as punishment for returning late from a trip.

Authors
Babajide Orevba photo
Babajide Orevba
Babajide Orevba is a CAF accredited Nigerian journalist and HOD of the Local Desk with over 10 years of experience in media landscape.He studied NCE Political Science/Social Studies, AOCOED.
Tags
World