Wales captain Gareth Bale made his Los Angeles FC debut on Sunday, coming off the bench for the final 18 minutes to help his new team see out a 2-1 away victory over Nashville in Tennessee.
Goals from Cristian Arango and Jose Cifuentes either side of a penalty by Nashville's Hany Mukhtar put LAFC 2-1 up in the Major League Soccer clash, before Bale, a five-time Uefa Champions League winner with Real Madrid, came on in the 72nd minute.
Even though LAFC were on the road, the former Real Madrid and Tottenham superstar was cheered by a sell-out crowd at Geodis Park, which included a vocal contingent of LAFC fans. "I was itching, soon as I got on the bench I wanted to get off and help the team, play some minutes," Bale said. "Important also for me individually that I kind of get my fitness going. "Good to get some minutes and more importantly got the three points – yeah we're all happy." It was Bale's first competitive club match since April 9.
Since then Bale has helped Wales earn their first World Cup berth since 1958 with a victory over Ukraine in the intercontinental playoff in June.