A European Championship like this can be very informative for club coaches, even if they already know the players very well. Carlo Ancelotti must have wondered what was reaching him from far-off Baku. In Wales' 2-0 win over Turkey, the focus was on a player he is very familiar with: Gareth Bale. The Welsh captain missed a penalty, but was otherwise one of the winner's protagonists. And his missed shot didn't throw him off track anyway: He would take the penalty again: “If the coach wanted that, I'd have no problem with it. It is part of the game that you also shoot. "

The Italian Ancelotti will coach Real Madrid for the second time in the new season. As during his first term, Bale could then be his player, provided the Welshman doesn't make the move. The fact that Ancelotti might meet Bale again is not insignificant, as that Bale is one reason why Ancelotti's very successful first employment with the Spanish record champions ended with a dismissal. In short, the problem can be broken down to the fact that the coach had no use for the player, much to the displeasure of President Florentino Pérez.

You have to know that Gareth Bale was once the most expensive football player in the world, his move was worth € 100 million in 2013 alone. A symbolic sum, the first three-digit amount that should evoke a changing of the guard. Bale, Pérez hoped, could replace Cristiano Ronaldo as the brightest star in the football cosmos with his talent and insane pace. Nothing came of it, partly because Bale had problems finding the right attitude to his job. Ancelotti showed only limited patience in the search for meaning. Just like other coaches who later struggled with Bale and Real.

But this Gareth Bale, who sometimes pays more attention to golf than his footballing life in Madrid, cannot be compared with Gareth Bale, who plays for Wales.

Even if it is the same person supported by identity documents, the Bale in the mostly red Welsh jersey is completely different from the version in the white shirt from Real.

Dedicated, assured of combinations and, yes, even sprinting like before, Bale scurried across the pitch in Baku.

Sometimes it could be found on the left, sometimes on the right and sometimes in the middle.

He even helped out on his own defensive when needed.

Unthinkable in Madrid, Ancelotti must have rubbed his eyes vigorously.

Bale is now 31 years old, and before the European Championship there were rumors that he could end his football career after the tournament and start one as a professional golfer. Some observers considered the fact that his agent violently denied it as a diversionary maneuver, as Bale's contract in Madrid runs until June 2022, his annual salary is around 15 million euros. Last season he was loaned to Tottenham Hotspur, before Real had offered his former hope for sale all over the world. A move to China failed at the last moment, and Tottenham only agreed to the loan because Real took half of Bale's astronomical salary.

How things will continue after the European Championship is unclear, Ancelotti does not feel much like working together, it is said from Madrid.

For Bale, the tournament is both a stage and an opportunity for reputation.

Five years ago he led his team to the semi-finals, the Welsh were the big surprise in France next to the Icelanders who were calling out loud.

Even then, Bale's performance with the national team, which will meet Italy this Sunday (6 p.m. in the FAZ live ticker for the European Football Championship, on ZDF and on MagentaTV), was disproportionate to those in Madrid.

A story that repeats itself.

The fact that the Welsh is almost certain to reach the round of 16 after four points from two games is largely thanks to Bale, who stands out with goalkeeper Danny Ward.

“Now we have a fantastic starting position that we fought hard for. If we had been offered four points after two games before the tournament, we would definitely have accepted, ”said Bale. This is exactly what they once wanted in Madrid: that Gareth Bale would lead an entire team to new heights. But Madrid is not Wales, and Gareth Bale is not always Gareth Bale.