Gareth Bale Heavily Booed by Real Madrid Supporters on His Return to Bernabeu After More than Two Years

Gareth Bale Heavily Booed by Real Madrid Supporters on His Return to Bernabeu After More than Two Years

Fred Kennedy
updated at April 12, 2023 at 8:00 PM
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  • Gareth Bale's 654-day wait to play at the Santiago Bernabeu ended on Saturday, April 9, when he featured against Getafe
  • The Welshman was introduced in the second half of the La Liga clash to replace Karim Benzema who was subbed off
  • However, Bale had a cameo to forget as a huge chunk of the home fans booed him shortly after he came on
  • Real won the encounter 2-0 to cement their lead at the top of the standings with 72 points, 12 ahead of second-placed Sevilla

Gareth Bale was handed a cold reception on his return to action with Real Madrid on Saturday, April 9.

Bale was drafted into the squad as Real Madrid battled Getafe in a La Liga clash at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Gareth Bale in action during the LaLiga Santander match between Real Madrid and Getafe CF at Santiago Bernabeu. Photo by Eurasia - Alvaro Medranda.
Gareth Bale in action during the LaLiga Santander match between Real Madrid and Getafe CF at Santiago Bernabeu. Photo by Eurasia - Alvaro Medranda.
Source: Getty Images

This was the Welshman's first appearance for the Galacticos at their home stadium in more than two years.

Prior to the Saturday appearance, Bale had waited for 654 days to play at the Santiago Bernabeu, with his last appearance coming back in February 2020.

At the time, he made a 15-minute cameo appearance as a substitute against Manchester City during a Champions League Round of 16 tie.

Real Madrid fans boo Gareth Bale

However, despite having to wait for that long to watch Bale play at home, Real Madrid fans showed no sign of missing the starman.

Instead, they used the occasion to make known their feelings about the Wales international as they heavily booed him when he came on for Karim Benzema.

While a sizeable amount of the supporters cheered the former Tottenham Hotspur ace, Mirror UK reports many of them jeered him as he made his way onto the pitch.

What took Bale so long to play at Bernabeu?

Bale's long absence from playing at Bernabeu is down to so many factors - including injury setbacks that have kept him out of action for some time.

Aside from that, the iconic stadium was also under renovation, forcing Real to play their home matches at the Alfredo De Stefano Stadium.

However, the Spanish giants made a return to their usual ground eight months ago and Bale had not played there since then until on Saturday.

The 32-year-old is expected to depart Real Madrid at the end of the season when his deal with the club expires.

Goalkeeper scores an unbelievable goal

Earlier, Sports Brief reported Modena vs Imolese Serie C clash was marked by a moment of madness when one of the goalkeepers scored from just outside his box.

Riccardo Gagno was Modena's match hero as he unleashed a 91st-minute effort that went unchallenged to earn his side a crucial win.

The tie was initially set for a frustrating draw for the home side before Gagno unbridled his magic to score the last-minute winner.

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Fred Kennedy
Fred Kennedy has a Bachelor's degree in journalism (Daystar University), currently working as a Sports Editor. He has more than five years of experience in digital journalism.