Real Madrid's Gareth Bale Still Learning How the Massive Club Works

In football, players from different countries are divided by much more than something as simplistic as language and playing styles. Differing mentalities also play a huge part.

Let’s look at the Real Madrid vs. Levante game where players’ reactions to events occurring during it seem to have attracted more interest than the match itself.

In the wonderful book The Italian Job, after conversations with some of the greats like Sir Alex Ferguson, Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger, the conclusion the authors Gabriele Marcotti and Gianluca Vialli come to is that, while the British mentality is one of logical thought process and the head ruling the heart, from a footballing point of view it’s the complete opposite.

We Latins—and despite many years in this great and sceptred isle, I include myself in that category—are frequently prone to taking decisions not always accompanied by vast quantities of reasoned logical thought. In football it is the exact opposite. We are totally logical.

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In football if we don’t think a player is playing well enough, or doing what he should be doing, we react accordingly with whistles, boos, hankies or whatever. That’s logical.

The love, passion and loyalty as I have seen in the past by some English fans goes far beyond the call of duty. The idea that we would applaud our side off the pitch after they’ve lost 5-0 at home is not just unthinkable, it’s totally illogical.

(In fact, the reaction of the Sunderland fans might suggest that some of that “Latin” spirit might be appearing in the British stands).

Everyone noticed and talked about Ronaldo’s gesture following Gareth Bale’s first goal against Levante. Having seen his overhead kick headed off the line only for Bale to finish, his raised hand was no more than a logical expression of frustration from the Madeira man as to just how his luck is running at the moment.

It was not a comment of disapproval about Bale’s finish but a gesture from someone who knows he’s lost that bit of sharpness, not least in that department where he has always been so deadly, namely in administering the coup de grace like the true matador that he is.

Which brings me to Bale. According to the British media, he’s back in business, scoring goals and setting Real Madrid back onto winning ways. So it’s “told you so” and yuh, boo, sucks to all the boo boys! Right??

Well actually no, it’s wrong—very wrong. And here, in my opinion, is why I think it’s wrong.

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The reaction of both the media and perhaps even Bale himself is fundamentally incorrect. What they are saying, the media with their words, Bale with his actions is “there you are, I’m better than you gave me credit for and despite your boos I’m doing great.”

I’m sorry to add a few facts to the hyperbole, but before Sunday’s match, Bale had scored zero goals in nine games with just one assist and everyone, including the fans, expected much more from him.

Why did he play better against Levante? Well to start with, he showed a much greater work ethic, he was involved in everything, led from the front and in fact did just what is expected of someone that cost €101 million. The annoying thing is that he is so very capable of doing that every week. Madrid doctors say privately that he has such a physique that he could play two games the same night. Hence the frustration with him when he doesn't track back or work harder without the ball.

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What perhaps he fails to realise is that goals are only part of the scenario, although expected nonetheless. But the crowd haven’t been booing him because he hasn’t been scoring but because of other aspects of his play, or more accurately the lack of them.

What the people were asking for was more work without the ball, more tracking back, more sweat in midfield, the occasional evidence of a defensive shift at the sharp end, rather than just a place in the spotlight on the main stage.

If reacting to the goals by cupping his hands around his ears and kicking the corner flag is his way of saying, “See, I’m better than you have given me credit for and I don’t deserve this criticism,” then he and anyone saying that are wrong. A wry smile would have been more than enough to make his point.

He needs to realise that this is Real Madrid, this is the life he has been lucky enough to be able to choose for himself and the flip-side of all the money, fame and adulation that comes with it is—as Sergio Ramos was quick to point out afterwards—that this is Real Madrid, and here expectations are huge. If you can’t accept that, then you don’t belong to this club. The thing is, I am convinced he can and he will.

On Sunday he finally showed the demanding Real Madrid fans something of what they wanted to see. But let’s get some perspective here; it was just for the first time in 10 games and with all due respect to them, it was only Levante.

What he also showed is that Gareth Bale still has to learn about how this massive club actually works.