The Real Madrid forward headed home with 10 minutes of the match against Espanyol remaining.
Gareth Bale once again headed home early from the Bernabéu this afternoon, leaving the Real Madrid vs Espanyol match (which finished 2-0) in the 80th minute.
The Welsh forward, who hadn’t been called up for the match by Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane, left as soon as the club’s regulations allowed him to without being fined – players are expected to stay in the ground until there are less than 10 minutes remaining.
Kroos backs early-bailing Bale
Teammate Toni Kroos, however, has defended Bale’s decision to miss the end of games, saying “We have our own set of rules within the dressing room so we all know that if one of us hasn’t played, they are free to leave – five or 10 minutes before the final whistle. Why not? There’s no problem. I’m sure Gareth had a look at his mobile phone to check the result when the game ended!”