Gareth Bale, the former Real Madrid player, confirmed that the Spanish media "crucified" him when he appeared holding a sign that read (Wales. Golf. Madrid. In That Order) during the celebrations for Wales qualifying for the Euro 2020, and admitted he was "naive" in not defending himself.
"The winger, who retired from professional football after the Qatar World Cup 2022 at the age of 33, said in an interview with (GC Magazine) ""I was celebrating with my teammates, and someone put the flag in front of me. What was I supposed to do? I couldn’t just throw it on the ground, it’s my country’s flag. The Spanish media crucified me,".
The former player for Southampton and Tottenham in England, as well as the Los Angeles team in America, added, "I didn’t play golf as much as they said. People invented an image of me that wasn’t real. People believe what they read, and maybe I was naive for not defending myself,”.
Bale, who won five UEFA Champions League titles and three La Liga titles with the Royal Club, explained that he played at Santiago Bernabeu against Real Sociedad four days later amid hostile atmosphere.
"I still remember that match I participated in the last 30 minutes. They were whistling nonstop, and in the end, they applauded me because I played very well. My agent called me and told me 'you are literally crazy. Nobody can endure this pressure and perform the way you do, you are strange.' I told him that I am fortunate to be mentally strong, because I don’t know if others could endure it,".
"Many players go to Madrid to become stars of the galaxy, but I went to play football. What I achieved as a Welsh player abroad was amazing,".
The ex-player revealed that the best goal he scored was the bicycle kick against Liverpool in the 2018 UEFA Champions League final, which Real Madrid won in Kyiv, explaining the aspects that led him to retire from professional football.
He concluded: "People don’t know what you go through at home. It reached a point where I realized that life is bigger than football; my father’s illness had a big impact,".
