NO matter how successful you are, if Real Madrid’s fans don’t think you’re pulling your weight they will let you know.
Just ask Wales legend Gareth Bale, who once scored twice in a Champions League final to earn Los Blancos another title win.
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The flying winger caused controversy last week when he led his country to Euro 2020 qualification posing next to a banner that read, ‘Wales. Golf. Madrid. In that order’.
And the Real Madrid fans were quick to tell Bale how disrespected they felt they were.
One held up a banner that retorted, ‘Rodrygo – Vini (Vinicius Jr) – Lucas (Vasquez) – Bale. In that order.’
While others booed and jeered the 30-year-old when he came on as a second half substitute in a 3-1 win over Real Sociedad this past weekend.
But Bale, who has scored 104 goals in 239 games for Real Madrid, isn’t the first player to be the brunt of the boo boys.
CRISTIANO RONALDO
He may be the club’s record goalscorer, but during his time at the Santiago Bernabeu even Ronaldo was targeted for abuse by fans.
During the 2016-17 season, they got on the No.7’s back because they felt he wasn’t working hard enough for the team.
It forced Zinedine Zidane to defend the forward, insisting even he was jeered on occasion when he played for the La Liga giants.
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“I don’t understand the jeers for Ronaldo but at the same time, I look at it and note that it even happened to me,” he told Marca.
“This never happened in Manchester and I don’t like it,” Ronaldo once revealed.
ALFREDO DI STEFANO
Regarded as one of the best footballers of all-time, Di Stefano was instrumental in Real Madrid’s success in La Liga and in the European Cup in the 1950s.
However, in 1962 – ahead of Christmas – the striker appeared in an advert for a ladies’ stockings brand in which the bottom half of his body was a woman’s.
The ad had the headline: “If I were my wife, I’d wear Berkshire.”
Upset by Di Stefano’s ad, the fans booed and jeered him at his next home game. But he had the last laugh though, scoring twice in a 3-2 win over Athletic Club.
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IKER CASILLAS
A former club captain, and a player who amassed the second most appearances in a Real Madrid shirt (725), Casillas last days at the club were fraught with tension.
After some poor performances in 2015, he was dropped in favour of Keylor Navas.
The fans let them know how displeased they were with his level of commitment, and when he was being whistled he was caught on TV muttering about the abuse he got.
“Shove the whistles up your backside,” he said during a game against Valencia.
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MICHEL
The elegant midfielder, as good a crosser of the ball as you’ve seen, played from 1986-94 for the record Champions League holders.
And he was a boyhood Real Madrid fan too -so when he became a target of the fans, it’s fair to say it stung.
During a game in 1988-89, Michel had had enough and walked off the pitch.
“It’s like if your father scolds you every day and even on your wedding day,” he told Cadena SER.
Michel recovered, but was again booed in a 1991 match against Spartak Moscow.
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EMILIO BUTRAGUENO
Known as ‘The Vulture’ because of his predator-like ability in front of goal, Butragueno was a goalscoring machine – netting 123 goals in La Liga in his 12 seasons at the club.
But when the Spanish legend was going through a dry patch, fans booed him relentlessly.
The tipping point came in a match against Dinamo Moscow in 1994, in which he was guilt of being wasteful in front of goal.
Interestingly, Butragueno jumped to Bale’s defence on Sunday after hearing the boos.
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AND THERE’S MORE…
At one point in their glittering careers, the likes of Fernando Hierro, Manuel Velazquez, Martin Vazquez, Karim Benzema, Kaka and Hugo Sanchez have all faced criticism from the Real Madrid faithful.
Hierro, himself, was more accepting of it.
“These are the demands of the club, of the best team in history. The demands of Real Madrid are like that,” he once said.
While Benzema, when he was having bad stretch of form scoring just 5 goals in 26 La Liga games in 2018, lamented the whistles in an interview with Vanity Fair.
“I play football and I try to help my team-mates and to win everything there is to win,” he said.
“What I don’t like is when people attack me when I play well, even if I don’t score. I play for the people who value what I do on the pitch.
“Those that come to the stadium to whistle, let them whistle. I’m not going to change their opinion.”
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