Real Madrid: Could Gareth Bale be Spanish club’s unlikely hero this season?
CNNCNN — Gareth Bale had a more eventful Sunday than most, scoring a brace and receiving a red card as Real Madrid were held to a 2-2 draw away to Villarreal on Sunday. His efforts at the Estadio de la Ceramica came just six weeks after manager Zinedine Zidane said that Bale’s departure from the Spanish capital was “very close” and would be “a good thing for everyone.” Those comments were met with derision by the player’s agent who called Zidane a “disgrace,” saying he had shown “no respect for a player that has done so much for Real Madrid.” Gareth Bale takes aim against Villareal. Quality Sport Images/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images READ: Romelu Lukaku racially abused by Cagliari fans during Serie A game But with three years left on his reported $18.7 million per year contract, top European clubs were turned off by a player limited to just 79 league starts over the last four seasons because of persistent injury problems. “We can’t be happy because we always look to win it’s important not to lose.” Bale’s first was a simple tap-in on the stroke of half time and pointed to a potential positional shift into a more rounded forward, mirroring the transition Ronaldo made from speedy wide player into devastating goal poacher. Quality Sport Images/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images READ: Arsenal comes from two goals down to earn draw against Tottenham READ: Liverpool maintains perfect start to the season to stay top of Premier League This was the first time in 482 senior club appearances that Bale was sent after two bookings, having been shown a straight red on two previous occasions.