Bale under scrutiny

> … as Madrid feel the love for Vinicius

ALE ES FANTASTICO”, Real Madrid´s interim coach Santiago Solari said, but still took him off in the 71st minute against Real Valladolid on Saturday.

Madrid were drifting towards a 0-0 draw at their Santiago Bernabeu home and, searching for inspiration, it was Bale´s No. 11 that came up.

He departed to whistles from the fans even if Solari, perhaps deliberately, spared him being being replaced directly by Vinicius Junior.

Nevertheless, the 18-year-old came on two minutes later and made the difference, his shot deflecting in to give Madrid the lead.

“Another day, Gareth will score,” Solari said. “And everyone will celebrate.”

But those quickest to criticise Bale are circling again ahead of the trip to Viktoria Plzen in the Champions League tomorrow (4am in Malaysia).

Support for Vinicius has been intense and Bale is seen as the one standing in the way. “Vinicius puts Bale in trouble,” read the frontpage of AS yesterday.

One week into his still-temporary tenure at Real, Solari is confronting the familiar problem of how to get the best out of Bale, now the team´s most potent threat.

This season, free of both injury and Cristiano Ronaldo, he started well, posting four goals and two assists from his first six games.

But an adductor problem last month, combined with the team´s crash under Julen Lopetegui, disrupted his rhythm. He has returned but is still not fully fit. His performances have lacked edge.

Still, the number of times Bale has been substituted has been a surprise, not least because his withdrawals have often come in the moments when Madrid should need him most.

In his last nine matches, Bale has been taken off seven times, five of those when his team were chasing a goal. Once, with the game at 0-0 against Atletico Madrid, he was replaced due to injury. The other four – while level with Athletic Bilbao and Valladolid, and trailing Barcelona and Alaves – the reasoning was less obvious.

Those calling for Vinicius to take Bale´s spot perhaps overlook the Welshman´s 24 goals in 41 appearances last season..

Vinicius is a precocious talent but he has fewer appearances for Real in his career than Bale has goals since August.

“Footballers cannot fight against what goes on around them,” Solari said. “The media, the fans, they are excited about Vinicius and that is fantastic, but his virtues are as evident as his weaknesses and his age. He has had almost no time to mature.”

If Solari believes the excitement around the teenager is worth harnessing, perhaps the Brazilian could slot into a front three alongside Bale, rather than instead of him. – AFP