Gareth Bale’s relationship with Real Madrid has been dysfunctional for a long time, but a break-up is now inevitable because of a jibe from the Welshman that is set to go down in footballing folklore.
After helping his country secure a place at Euro 2020 with a 2-0 win over Hungary on Tuesday night, the winger laughed as he and his team-mates held aloft a flag adorned with the words ‘Wales. Golf. Madrid. In that order'.
Bale clearly saw it as a humorous response to allegations in Spain that he prefers playing for his country or spending time on the golf course to lining out at Santiago Bernabeu.
Madridistas, though, have not seen the funny side. For the club, the fans, the media from the capital city, the message on the flag was disrespectful, a 'joke' that contained far more than a grain of truth.
As far as they are concerned, this was Bale mocking the club that pays him €17.5 million (£14.75m/$19m) a year.
Perhaps that was the point, though. Perhaps Bale has simply had enough trying to win over everyone associated with the club and simply wanted to send a pointed message to everyone who has turned on him over the past two years.
Until this international break, the forward had kept his feelings about his treatment in Spain under wraps. His agent spoke out many times on his behalf but Bale has always remained silent in the face of fierce criticism.
However, after claiming he was more excited to play for Wales than he is for Real and following that up with the flag stunt, it is clear that Bale is done with diplomacy.
It's now clear that we've reached the end game: Bale will soon leave Madrid, either in January or at the end of the season.
Zinedine Zidane will continue to lean on the 30-year-old until he departs, though.
After Karim Benzema, Bale is Madrid's most reliable world-class attacker, which is precisely why Zidane restored the Wales international to the starting line-up at the start of the season after spending the summer publicly trying to sell him.
The French coach has accepted that there is no longer any point in reprimanding Bale or trying to change his habits. So, he will coldly – and sensibly – extract what value he can from the club’s record signing.
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Reports in Spain say Bale will not be fined by the club for this incident but the press have not been as forgiving.
On Wednesday, the news about Luis Enrique’s return as Spain coach gave Bale a little breathing room, but the two major Madrid-based sports newspapers did not hold back on Thursday morning.
“Disrespectful, misguided, ungrateful, in that order,” raged Marca, while their counterparts AS used golf to dig him out again with the pun 'Bale gets into a hole'.
The editor of AS’s Real Madrid section, Tomas Roncero, said his flag for Bale would be 'Out, Out, Out.' El Chiringuito TV show host Josep Pedrerol had already demanded Florentino Perez "kick him out" of the club.
Madrid had the chance to do just that during the summer when Bale lined up a move to the Chinese Super League, only for the club president to block the transfer because of a season-ending injury to Marco Asensio, much to the frustration and embarrassment of Zidane.
Bale’s latest action should be interpreted as a comical response to the constant criticism he endured, rather than an unprofessional gesture, although there is plenty of crossover.
The words on the flag, created by Welsh fans and even sung by his compatriots Joe Allen and Sam Vokes, originally stemmed from comments made by former Real Madrid player Predrag Mijatovic, who alleged that Bale thinks more about Wales and golf than Madrid.
There has undoubtedly been a campaign against him by media in Madrid. He is not a saint and could easily have done more to ingratiate himself at Madrid but he has undoubtedly been harshly treated.
Bale’s frequent injuries made him an easy target when there are 30 sports pages to fill a day, as did his then-world-record €100m (£86M/$110M) transfer fee and huge pay packet.
His refusal to speak Spanish in public and reports that he does not mix well with key figures in the dressing room cast him as an outsider, meaning he was an easy scapegoat during difficult periods.
Bale has played a key role in four Champions League wins and one La Liga title since arriving in 2013 but the successes are quickly forgotten every time he is seen to show anything but 100 per cent dedication to the Madrid cause.
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“Bale doesn’t know how to play football. He only knows how to run,” wrote Marca after he scored on his debut against Villarreal, showing what he was up against from the start.
There was some validity to the appraisal, given Bale’s athletic, dynamic style has never completely meshed with the more technical game in Spain.
And yet he still boasts an impressive scoring record, with 104 goals from 238 games.
However, the negative narrative around Bale has never really subsided, meaning he has never become a fan favourite.
Consequently, this latest episode is sure to provoke a supporter backlash when Madrid host Real Sociedad at the Bernabeu on Saturday.
Still, now that he is fit again, Bale will likely form a key part of Zidane’s squad and could even start the game, meaning a hostile reception awaits.
Although accustomed to occasional whistling and jeering, Bale is set to face the full fury of the fan base now that he has, in the eyes of the Madridistas, openly ridiculed their club. They supporters may even unfurl a few 'humorous' flags of their own.
At this stage, though, Bale clearly will not care. In fact, he may even see the funny side.
After all, Madridistas have accused him of a lack of gratitude and respect – after showing him neither for the past two years.