Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale Cited in Reasons for Real Madrid Failure by Fans

Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale have been named among the "seven deadly sins" of Real Madrid's season by Marca readers.

Carlo Ancelotti's side crashed out of the Champions League as a result of Wednesday's 1-1 draw with Juventus, losing the semi-final 3-2 on aggregate. Having already been eliminated from the Copa del Rey and currently standing four points behind La Liga leaders Barcelona with two matches left, it looks as if no further trophies are on the horizon for the Bernabeu club this season.

As such, Marca readers have carried out a postmortem on their side's disappointing campaign. Interestingly, Ronaldo and Bale are the only players to have their form singled out for criticism. Here's a look at Marca's comments, which were inspired by over 50,000 participants:

"

3/ Cristiano Ronaldo failing to fire on all cylinders

It's difficult to blame someone that has scored over 50 goals during the season, but his performances over April and May have fallen away from the incredibly high levels he set earlier in the season.

...

5/ Bale, off the boil

The Welshman is a central figure for the Italian manager, but his performances this season have been far from last season's contribution. Whenever Bale is fit he gets a start, although his performances on the pitch have hardly shown why he's so trusted.

"

Alex Livesey/Getty Images

Ronaldo is La Liga's top scorer at present and the joint-top marksman, alongside Lionel Messi, in the Champions League. As Marca's article notes, it's extremely difficult to suggest his goalscoring form has negatively impacted Madrid. However, it seems the spread of his strikes has irked supporters.

He scored eight goals in April, five of which came in a 9-1 win over Granada. Despite netting five goals in four games so far during May, only failing to impact the result during the 2-2 draw with Valencia, Ronaldo's overall play has dwindled.

Although Bale missed a plethora of chances during the second leg with Juventus—receiving obvious criticism in the process—Ronaldo's performance was notable for his lack of impact in the second half. Television presenter Richard Keys and B/R UK's Andrew Gibney summed this up:

Still, it's perhaps foolish to criticise a player who is en route to landing the 2015 Golden Shoe. If Ronaldo is No. 3 on the list of Madrid fans' gripes, one has to worry for every other individual at the club.

Bale's difficulties have been well-documented, particularly after Wednesday's performance, which has led to an increase in reports suggesting he will join Manchester United in the summer. David McDonnell of the Mirror even believes the Red Devils will sell Angel Di Maria and Robin van Persie to make the deal happen.

There's no denying some of Bale's performances have been frustrating this season. During his debut year, he scored 21 goals and assisted 16 across 39 appearances in La Liga and the Champions League. This term, he has 15 and 10 assists in 40 displays.

Bale's form has seen him jeered throughout the season and, over the past couple of months, become something of a targeted man at the Bernabeu. Whenever he does something wrong, you can bet Madrid fans are jotting it down. B/R UK's Guillem Balague believes he isn't the only player who deserves to be criticised:

Interestingly, Marca's rundown also cites a lack of squad rotation and various injuries as key reasons behind Madrid's relative failure. Supporters believe Carlo Ancelotti has failed to trust the squad's back-up players and hasn't been able to deal with consistent problems at the club. It's also suggested poor results against the elite have stopped Madrid from adding more silverware to the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup.

Ancelotti will be fortunate to remain in a job next season, such is the culture at Madrid. While Ronaldo is destined to keep on scoring, Bale's performances will continue to be inspected.

His overall play and suitability to the team, not his numbers, are what concern many. However, should Bale become available for transfer, we are likely to see how prominent his reputation remains on the continent and, more specifically, in Manchester.