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Gale Bale need not 'prove anything' at Real Madrid after Cristiano Ronaldo's exit - Nacho

Gareth Bale has nothing to prove at Real Madrid, his teammate Nacho said after the Welshman led Los Blancos to a 2-0 win over Getafe on Sunday.

Bale stepped into the void left by Cristiano Ronaldo to score Madrid's second goal after previously hitting the woodwork as Real claimed three points in their first La Liga game of the season.

But Nacho believes Bale doesn't have to necessarily replace Ronaldo as he's already been an important player from the club for years.

"As for Bale, he does not have to follow Ronaldo's path. [Ronaldo] marked a time here," Nacho told Madrid's website. "Bale is a very important player for us and has won many things here and does not have to prove anything to anyone.

"He has the confidence of all and surely he will do it very well. The crowd is with Bale and he is very happy at Real Madrid."

Dani Carvajal scored his first league goal since 2014 to get Madrid started in JulenĀ Lopetegui's first competitive game in charge at the Bernabeu.

"I liked the team's performance in general and Bale had a very good match," Lopetegui said. "He offers lots of different things, like the other players. We must continue working, the team always comes before individual talent and that goes for Bale too.

"I'm thrilled that we won the game. La Liga is a competition that excites us and it's our bread and butter. This is the first step in what's a very long season. We're satisfied with the performance."

Lopetegui kept Keylor Navas in goal despite the addition of Thibaut Courtois, and he gave no indication if the decision could be permanent.

"We'll be running with three goalkeepers in the squad. We're delighted with the competition for the goalkeeper's jersey," he said. "It's marvellous and I don't see it as a problem, but rather see it as us having several options.

"We'll make decisions as the season progresses. We're really happy with the performance levels of our goalkeepers."

The game was a palette cleanser after last week's UEFA Super Cup defeat to Real's other neighbours, Atletico Madrid, and Marco Asensio said it was good to move on.

"We had to turn the page of the Super Cup," Asensio said. This is another competition and we are very excited about this season.

"We have played a great game and now we are thinking about the next one. We have a great team, we are working well and that was reflected on the field."

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