Gareth Bale has missed almost HALF of match minutes since joining Real Madrid from Tottenham for £86million in 2013
Welshman has come in for severe criticism from sections of Bernabeu faithful and these damning stats show why
GARETH BALE has sat almost HALF of his entire time at Real Madrid, since joining from Tottenham for £86million in 2013.
These are the damning stats which show just why the Welshman is so unpopular among Los Blancos fans.
reveal Bale has missed 9,346 minutes in his four years, and that makes up 43 per cent of of playing time.
He was taken off during the midweek victory over Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League — and is a doubt for the La Liga clash with Espanyol on Sunday.
Injuries have been a real concern for Bale and have marred his time in Madrid.
After a sensational season in which he netted winners in the Copa del Rey and Champions League final victories, he began missing more and more games.
Bale, 28, is the member of the BBC — alongside Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo — who has missed the most amount of football since his arrival completed the formation of the dreamy front line.
And that is despite being the youngest of the trio.
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Injuries during the last campaign gave Isco a chance to stake his claim, and the Spain international earned a starting berth in the Champions League final ahead of Bale.
Meanwhile, the emergence of Marco Asensio has made his position even more fragile.
Zinedine Zidane insists he has not completely ruled Bale out of the clash with Espanyol.
⚽ Ian Wright's Premier League Tips ⚽
Former striker Ian Wright selects his top tips for Saturday's action.
"Romelu Lukaku has started exactly as you’d want a £75m signing to start.
"Not only has he scored a load of goals but he’s also silenced those questioning his link-up play and the first touch.
"He’s the only player in my mind when it comes to the first goalscorer market - and I fancy United to get loads againsrt Crystal Palace."
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