This archive report was first published on 24 July 2019.
Real Madrid's Gareth Bale made a goalscoring return to the Spanish side in a thrilling 2-2 draw against Arsenal at the International Champions Cup on July 23, 2019.
The match, which took place in the United States capital, saw Arsenal name a strong side captained by Mesut Ozil, while Real Madrid had Bale on the bench and Eden Hazard starting alongside fellow new signing Luka Jovic in attack.
However, the match looked to be over as a contest after Real Madrid defender Nacho was sent off for two yellow cards in a frantic early spell.
Lacazette stepped up to sneak the 10th minute penalty home, before the Frenchman delightfully flicked the ball through for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to double the lead 14 minutes later.
But Real Madrid fought back, with Bale and Marco Asensio scoring inside three second half minutes to level up the scores and take the game to penalties.
Real Madrid ultimately won the match in a penalty shootout, with Arsenal's misses from Granit Xhaka, Nacho Monreal, and Robbie Burton proving costly.
Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane said it was his decision to give Bale his first minutes of the pre-season, despite revealing this week the club planned to sell the Welsh forward.
“He played because he wanted to be with us and play, the other day (against Bayern Munich) not,” Zidane said. “He played and well.
“Today he played, the decision is mine, he played a part and we will see what will happen. Nothing has changed. You know the situation.”
Arsenal manager Unai Emery said the result wasn’t important but they showed a good level and when they needed young players their performance was perfect.
