IS Gareth Bale going bald?
It’s a question that’s been doing the rounds on social media and online forums for the past couple of years.
The Real Madrid and Wales superstar, 27, had nearly always rocked the short back and sides look while playing in the Premier League, but started to grow his hair during his time in Spain.
At Southampton and then Tottenham Hotspur, the winger had quite a thick head of hair.
After cropping it short for a while, Bale then started to grow out his hair and wore an Alice band during his second season at the Bernabeu.
The Welshman then took it a step further to wear the man bun/samurai look he has now made popular.
But there have been persistent rumours that Bale has actually grown that hair because his hair – especially on top and by his crown – is falling out.
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The first image that sparked the debate was while Bale still had short hair in his first season at Real Madrid.
Images appeared to show his hair thinning on top after he celebrated scoring a brilliant solo goal in a 5-0 win against Rayo Vallecano.
As Bale’s hair grew the questions went away and seemed forgotten.
But during a wet 1-0 win away at Real Sociedad last season, in which Bale scored a goal that just about kept Los Blancos in the title race, Bale headed the ball and appeared to reveal a bald patch underneath his long locks.
The image was only fleeting but quickly circulated on social media and saw news stories appear in the British and Spanish press.
More questions were then asked during the Euros.
The back of Bales head appeared to show bald spots as Wales beat Slovakia 2-1 in the opening game of a wonderful tournament for Chris Coleman’s squad.
As well as the claimed hair loss on the top and back of his head, Bale’s hairline has quite noticeably receded at the front.
However, that could well be down to the constant pulling of his hair to tie it up.
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