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  4. Gareth Bale celebrated with a flag that read 'Wales. Golf. Madrid. In that order' after he helped secure his country's qualification to Euro 2020

Gareth Bale celebrated with a flag that read 'Wales. Golf. Madrid. In that order' after he helped secure his country's qualification to Euro 2020

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Gareth Bale celebrated with a flag that read 'Wales. Golf. Madrid. In that order' after he helped secure his country's qualification to Euro 2020
Sports3 min read

Gareth Bale/Wales

Getty/Athena Pictures

Bale and his teammates celebrated with the controversial flag.

Gareth Bale posed with a flag that read "Wales. Golf. Madrid. In that order" after he helped his home country secure its place at UEFA Euro 2020 on Tuesday night.

The flag was made by a group of Welsh fans, according to AS, and was inspired by former Madrid player Pedja Mijatovic's recent comments on Bale.

The Montenegrin told El Larguero in October that the Welshman was a "peculiar type of person" whose priorities run in order of "Wales, then golf and after that, Real Madrid."

Mijatovic's remarks were first turned into a chant by Wales fans during its 2-0 win over Azerbaijan on Saturday, which Bale described as "a good bit of fun," according to Goal.

After the 2-0 win over Hungary on Tuesday, that fun escalated to the next level, as Bale and his teammates posed with a Welsh flag which had adopted the same slogan. 

Bale's celebration sparked outrage with the Spanish media, as well as Real Madrid. 

MARCA journalist Ruben Jimenez described the 30-year-old's actions as "ugly," and said that the Welshman would "never be a Real Madrid legend."

Spanish site Madrid Sports called the celebration "unforgivable," while Real Madrid said it was "a joke in very bad taste," according to ESPN.

Bale came close to leaving the Santiago Bernabeu in the summer for Chinese Super League side, Jiangsu Suning, however the trade collapsed last minute after Madrid cancelled the move.

Jose Mourinho's appointment as Tottenham Hotspur's new head coach on Wednesday has now sparked talk Bale could return to his former club, with ex-Spurs defender Michael Dawson telling TalkSPORT he believes it would be a "shrewd move" for a "world class player."

Aaron Ramsey scored both goals for Wales on the night, securing its place at a major tournament for the first time time since Euro 2016, where it reached the semi-finals. 

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The Gareth Bale situation at Real Madrid shows how toxic life can be at one of the world's most powerful soccer clubs

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