Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has backed Gareth Bale to come good despite another insipid performance from the Welshman in the 2-1 defeat by Barcelona on Saturday night.
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Bale was handed just his second start since joining Los Blancos for €91 million last month, but failed to make an impact on the game before being replaced by Karim Benzema after an hour.
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The 24-year-old occupied a variety of positions across the frontline during his time on the field, but Ancelotti explained that his starting position in the centre of the pitch was merely a defensive tactic to pressure Sergio Busquets before moving into wide areas when Madrid had the ball.
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"They are his first games and he needs to learn the combinations with the other players.
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"He played a good game, he worked hard for the team."
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"He didn't change positions from the wing to the centre a lot. He just looked to pressure Busquets when they had the ball and then play on the wing where there was more space."
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Goals either side of halftime from Neymar and Alexis Sanchez were enough to hand Barca victory as Jese Rodriguez's reply for Madrid in stoppage time was merely a late consolation.
He needs to just wake up and perform well in big games like this. That is the reason why Real Madrid bought him i'm sure