Gareth Bale: John Toshack backs fellow Welshman at Real Madrid

Gareth Bale joined Real Madrid from Spurs on a six-year contract for a world record fee of £85.3m in 2013

Ex-Real Madrid coach John Toshack is confident fellow Welshman Gareth Bale can come through his recent troubles at the Bernabeu.

Bale, 25, has been the subject of some criticism in the Spanish media, but responded with two goals against Levante last Sunday.

Real face Barcelona on Sunday (20:00 GMT) before Bale joins Wales for their Euro 2016 qualifier in Israel.

"He'll come through that, he'll be ok," Toshack said of the recent criticism.

"I just hope with this game with Wales coming up he can produce the goods and take them to where we all want to be."

The forward had gone eight matches without a goal for Real Madrid before scoring his brace against Levante.

He celebrated his first strike by covering his ears and kicking the corner flag in an apparent response to his critics.

Wales manager Chris Coleman says Bale's club fortunes are "separate" to his international form and he has nothing to prove for Wales.

Bale was handed his senior Wales debut by Toshack in 2006, with the then Southampton youngster facing Trinidad & Tobago as a 16-year-old.

Toshack, 66, had two spells at Real Madrid and understands the pressure and scrutiny management and players are under.

"When you're at Madrid it [criticism] comes as part of the job. Cristiano Ronaldo's been taking stick lately," added Toshack, who managed the Spanish club in 1989-90 and 1999.

"At Madrid they don't give in easy. You've got to be winning things all the time.

"If you're going to take any flak, it's better to be at Real Madrid taking it. There are worse places to take flak."