Bale played the ball less than Casillas in Turin

Invisible Man Bale

Gareth Bale's performance in Turin has met with many long faces. The Welshman was floating as lonely as a cloud in Turin right up until Ancelotti decided to do something that would normally be deemed unthinkable: to take him off. It wasn't that Bale was playing dirty or was off form, more that he just wasn't forming a part of his team's game. He just didn't get involved. So much so that he actually touched the ball fewer times than Casillas.

While Iker passed the ball out to his teammates 24 times, Bale only moved the ball on 19 times. A complete disconnection from what was going on that was driving the Real manager spare. Despite Bale's terrible performance, Ancelotti still felt he had to justify the substitution and even back his player: "He's a very important player and he was tired. And to have a tired player, just back from injury, is not a good idea".

Truth be told, Bale chose not to do his bit both in attack and defence. Not one shot on goal, not a single tackle... he didn't even get caught off side. His stats for the game are a long list of zeros. The Welsh rocket also ran a lot less than usual: just 9.7 kilometres.

Gareth Bale's performance in Turin has met with many long faces. The Welshman was floating as lonely as a cloud in Turin right up until Ancelotti decided to do something that would normally be deemed unthinkable: to take him off. It wasn't that Bale was playing dirty or was off form, more that he just wasn't forming a part of his team's game. He just didn't get involved. So much so that he actually touched the ball fewer times than Casillas.
While Iker passed the ball out to his teammates 24 times, Bale only moved the ball on 19 times. A complete disconnection from what was going on that was driving the Real manager spare. Despite Bale's terrible performance, Ancelotti still felt he had to justify the substitution and even back his player: "He's a very important player and he was tired. And to have a tired player, just back from injury, is not a good idea".
Truth be told, Bale chose not to do his bit both in attack and defence. Not one shot on goal, not a single tackle... he didn't even get caught off side. His stats for the game are a long list of zeros. The Welsh rocket also ran a lot less than usual: just 9.7 kilometres.