Real Madrid: Bale agent slams "disgraceful" Bernabéu fans
Jonathan Barnett told Sky Sports: "Gareth deserves the greatest of respect. The way that Real Madrid fans have been treating him is a disgrace."
Gareth Bale’s popularity at the Santiago Bernabéu has never been at a lower ebb and the fans at Real Madrid’s stadium have been making their displeasure known in recent weeks with regular barracking of the Wales forward.
Bale is under contract at the Bernabéu until 2022 and has made no public statement to the effect that he wants to leave before the end of his current deal, but it remains to be seen what the Real Madrid board – and potentially a new manager taking charge in the summer – have to say on the subject.
Bale has failed to fill Ronaldo's boots in 2018-19
After his game-winning cameo in last season’s Champions League final it was felt that Bale would step seamlessly into the void left by the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo but it has not quite worked out like that with injuries and a drop in form leading to question marks over the Welshman’s commitment to the club and ability to lead the side in the Portuguese’s absence. There have been occasional flashes of the undoubted brilliance Bale possesses, but in recent weeks he has found himself playing second fiddle to 18-year-old Vinicius Junior.
Luka Modric said ahead of Real’s Champions League match against Ajax that Bale was happy and working hard to recover his most explosive form, but the fans have run out of patience and jeered the forward when he was substituted during the 1-0 Clásico defeat to Barcelona on Saturday.
That has led his agent, Jonathan Barnett, to remind Real fans what Bale has done for the club: “Frankly, they should be ashamed of themselves,” Barnett told Sky Sports. “Gareth deserves the greatest of respect. The way that Real Madrid fans have been treating him is a disgrace. This generation of Madrid fans will be talking about Gareth’s achievements over the next few years.”
Bale "is happy and wants to stay at Real Madrid"
Barnett was also quoted in Dutch media outlet Voetbalzone as saying that Bale has no intention of leaving the Bernabéu this summer and that club want him to stay as well.
“Despite all the stories that are being written in the Spanish press, he is happy, he speaks reasonable Spanish and there are no issues between him and the rest of the players at Real Madrid. The people who write this stuff don’t know anything about him. There have been no discussions about Gareth leaving Real Madrid. He won’t be going anywhere in the summer, despite whatever is being written. He’s happy and wants to stay at Real Madrid and the club feel the same way.”