Bale: We know who real parasite is

GARETH Bale has issued an explosive statement on social media in response to an article published by a Spanish media outlet in which he was labelled a “parasite”.

The 32-year-old missed Real Madrid’s 4-0 defeat to Barcelona on Sunday but linked up with Wales for their World Cup play-off semi-final clash with Austria on Thursday, scoring twice as Wales won 2-1.

Ahead of the international break, several Spanish media companies vented their frustrations over Bale’s availability for his country. Marca went a step further and branded the Welsh captain a “parasite”, even going as far as to mock up an image of the Cardiff-born ace as an insect sucking blood from the Real Madrid team emblem.

Yesterday afternoon, the Wales star issued a statement on Twitter to express his disappointment over the article published by Marca. He wrote: “At a time when people are taking their own lives because of the callousness and relentlessness of the media, I want to know who is holding these journalists and the news outlets that allow them to write articles like this accountable?”

He added: “The media expect superhuman performances from professional athletes, and will be the first to celebrate with them when they deliver, yet instead of commiserating with them when they show an ounce of human error, they are torn to shreds instead, encouraging anger and disappointment in their fans.

“The everyday pressures on athletes is immense, and it’s as clear as day how negative media attention could easily send an already stressed athlete, or anybody in the public eye, over the edge.

“So I want to use my platform to encourage change in the way we publicly talk about and criticise people, simply for the most part not meeting the often unrealistic expectations that are projected on to them. We all know who the real parasite is!”