Zidane: Bale apologised to Real Madrid after red card

Real Madrid head coach Zinedine Zidane said Gareth Bale asked for forgiveness after the Welsh star was sent off in Wednesday’s thrilling draw against Las Palmas.

Bale saw red early in the second half as Madrid overcame their numerical disadvantage to salvage a 3-3 draw in LaLiga at the Santiago Bernabeu.

A pair of yellow cards within two minutes of the restart gave Las Palmas the momentum with two goals and a 3-1 lead approaching the hour-mark before Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice inside the final four minutes of regulation to earn a point.

Asked about Bale’s red card post-match, Zidane told reporters: “He has apologised. He is not happy with the expulsion.

“This can happen, it is a fact of the game and we cannot change it.

“I used to be happy after the matches and now I cannot be happy lately, but this is a very long season and we are going to change it.”

Referees had been in the spotlight heading into the clash following Madrid’s come-from-behind 3-2 win at Villarreal last time out.

Madrid were awarded a controversial penalty as they rallied to beat Villarreal, with outspoken Barcelona defender Gerard Pique suggesting the Spanish capital club continue to benefit from contentious decisions in the league.

Zidane, however, refused to blame the officials for the draw as Madrid lost top spot to Barca by a point, though they have a match in hand.

“As always I will not get into the subject of the referees. We do not have to look for excuses of that,” the Frenchman said.

“I look at what we can do, and I think we can do better. With what we are doing. There are times of the season that are like this, already three or four games, but we cannot look for excuses with the referee.”