Gareth Bale reveals the two things he hates about Real Madrid: 'Getting nutmegged and Spanish spiders'

The £86m world record signing says he loves living in Spain, but can't deal with encounters of the eight-legged kind

Gareth Bale (GETTY IMAGES)

Gareth Bale has revealed what he doesn’t like about Real Madrid: being embarrassed by his team-mates in training and having to deal with the terrifying Spanish spider.

In an interview with FourFourTwo magazine, Bale reiterates that he is enjoying his time in the Spanish capital despite constant reports linking him with a return to the Premier League with Manchester United.

Bale even explains how the discovery of a British food section at a local supermarket has helped him settle in, although the bonus of having “baked beans” available is somewhat diminished by the absence of PG Tips.

However, there are certain things that the £86m record signing hasn’t quite taken to, with the first being on the end of nutmeg by one of his Galactico teammates in training.

“The one thing you don’t want is to be on the end of a nutmeg,” said Bale. “Especially with rows of cameras. We're always getting killed out there – I just try not to let it be me.

“Whenever someone gets nutmegged, we’re all jumping and joking around. If you get ‘megged, or you go 20 passes without touching the ball, you stay in for an extra go. They’ll do anything to keep you in the middle.”

But there’s something haunting the Welshman even more than the thought of Cristiano Ronaldo leaving him flummoxed on the training ground, as he reveals.

“Spiders….terrible,” Bale explained as he revealed he is one of many to suffer from arachnophobia. “I call out to somebody, anybody, to come and deal with a spider, just so I don’t have to.”