Gareth Bale Jeered by Real Madrid Fans in Galatasaray Win, Rafa Benitez Unfazed

Gareth Bale was jeered by some sections of the Real Madrid fans at the Bernabeu on Tuesday night as Los Blancos beat Galatasaray 2-1 in their final pre-season friendly, but manager Rafael Benitez seemed unfazed.

According to Pete Jenson of the Daily Mail, "supporters were not entirely happy with the display and some took it out on Bale as he left the pitch on 85 minutes," though, Jenson added that "other fans applauded drowning out the jeers."

Aside from an outstanding winner from Marcelo, the match was a fairly uninspiring affair with Madrid having plenty of efforts on goal but failing to take their chances and even Cristiano Ronaldo lacking his phenomenally clinical edge.

Per Jenson's report, Benitez played Bale centrally in attacking midfield with Jese ahead of him up front.

Madrid-based sports writer Dermot Corrigan noted the crowd's reaction to the Welshman, who somewhat failed to convince in his new position:

However, Benitez did not appear concerned. According to Real Madrid's official website, he said:

"

The debate will be with him, with Isco and James, with all of the players in that area. We are looking to get them all working well together. Gareth moves more, looks for depth and the chance to create space. That work means that others can move between positions. He is going to perform for us, I am convinced of that. If he had scored today we would be talking about something else.

"

Nor for that matter did Bale, who took to Twitter after the match:

The winger struggled at times last season and the abuse he received from some of the Madrid faithful was well documented, his car was even vandalised after a defeat to Barcelona in March.

Bale clearly has some work to do to ingratiate himself with the supporters and playing as a No. 10 could make his task more difficult.

The 26-year-old's key strength is his ability to charge at defenders with frightening pace and power, so it remains to be seen whether he can adapt to a role that requires the vision and intricate technique that made the likes of Mesut Ozil and Angel Di Maria so dangerous there for Madrid in the past.

Though it was hardly an entire stadium full of baying fans as Bale walked off, the fact that he still doesn't have their full support means it could well be a make-or-break season for the Welshman in the Spanish capital.