GARETH BALE has been utterly frozen out at Real Madrid by boss Zinedine Zidane – but he’s not the first and he won’t be the last, either.
The former Tottenham star, 31, earns £600,000 a week to play golf and poke fun of his own club from the bench these days.
Gareth Bale is the latest in a long line of stars to be frozen out by Real Madrid boss Zinedine ZidaneCredit: EPA
Bale angered Real fans after posing with the now famous ‘Wales. Golf. Madrid’ flagCredit: Sky Sports
Bale has been completely frozen out by Zidane and has resorted to messing around on the bench as his stock dipped dramatically.
The Welshman’s status at the Bernabeu was hurt after he posed with a “Wales. Golf. Madrid. In that order” flag while on international duty.
And it seems that was the straw which broke the camel’s back, with Zidane now refusing to play the club’s top-earner.
But Bale is by no means the first Real Madrid star to be frozen out by the French boss.
We take a look at seven other recent examples, from James Rodriguez to Alvaro Morata…
JAMES RODRIGUEZ
James Rodriguez has no future at Real Madrid under ZidaneCredit: Getty Images – Getty
STILL at Real Madrid, Rodriguez spent two years away at Bayern Munich on loan.
But since returning last summer he’s only played 14 games – just one since the restart – and looks unlikely to play again.
He will likely be sold this summer – if there are any takers.
Rodriguez puts his decline down to the fact he’s playing a “dead” position, with coaches snubbing No10s, says the Colombian.
KEYLOR NAVAS
Keylor Navas was booted out to make room for Courtois by ZidaneCredit: Reuters
FOR so long, Navas was Zidane’s undisputed No1.
But when Thibaut Courtois arrived from Chelsea, the Costa Rican was forced to leave to find first-team football.
Now at PSG, Navas was frozen out under Zidane in 2018-19 after the French boss rejoined the club in March 2019.
He only enjoyed a brief run of games thanks to injury to Courtois.
MATEO KOVACIC, DANI CEBALLOS & MARCOS LLORENTE
Ceballos, along with Llorente and Kovacic, were rarely given a chance by ZidaneCredit: Getty – Contributor
A STAR-STUDDED midfield trio in their own right, Kovacic, Ceballos and Llorente never really got going at the Bernabeu.
The trio were behind the established group of Toni Kroos, Luka Modric and Casemiro – with Zidane refusing to change his mind regardless of form.
Kovacic moved on to Chelsea and is now thriving after a tricky first year on loan.
Ceballos himself is on loan at Arsenal and has been vastly improved under Mikel Arteta – who could launch a summer swoop to make his loan permanent.
And Llorente is now shining at Real’s rivals Atletico Madrid after being pushed into a more advanced role.
ALVARO MORATA
Alvaro Morata was brought back to Madrid purely to serve as Benzema’s No2Credit: AP:Associated Press
MORATA returned to Real Madrid after a successful stint at Juventus hoping to finally become the club’s No1 striker.
But Zidane was adamant Karim Benzema was his main man – with Morata the bench-warmer.
Morata then quit for Chelsea, where he endured a torrid time, and is now at Atletico Madrid.
ACHRAF HAKIMI
Hakimi has now been sold after Zidane failed to realise his potentialCredit: REUTERS
AS a youngster, the Moroccan wing-back was shipped out to Borussia Dortmund on a two-year loan deal, behind Dani Carvajal in the pecking order.
Despite becoming one of the most-sought-after stars in Europe during his time in Germany, Zidane was quick to say he didn’t want him.
Hakimi was sold permanently to Inter Milan just this summer after being frozen out by stubborn Zizou.
Inside Bale’s millionaire lifestyle in Madrid, with a £6.5m home, £230,000 Ferrari and golf on his doorstep
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
