It's been five years since Gareth Bale completed a then-world record move to Real Madrid and signs suggest his time at the Bernabeu could be up.

Bale was signed as the potential heir to Cristiano Ronaldo's throne, yet injuries and inconsistency have stopped him from realising his potential.

Now, the Welshman is out of favour under Zinedine Zidane and there are reports that Chelsea's Eden Hazard could be brought in as his replacement.

It was during the recent 3-1 defeat at home to Juventus that Bale's future was really brought into question, with Zidane substituting the 28-year-old at half-time.

No reason was given by Real's manager, though he insisted earlier this week that there is no problem between him and Bale.

"No, I don't think so. This is football," said Zidane. "I don't see either of them (Bale and Karim Benzema) looking sad, they are training well.

"I spoke to the pair of them the other day, they would both like to score more goals but everyone is working well. It is always going to happen in a side like ours.

BALE STRUGGLING IN MADRID

"There are players in good form and playing well but I have to be ready always to evaluate who is the best players for the team at any given time."

Real were 2-0 down when Zidane decided to replace Bale and it eventually proved an inspired move when substitute Lucas Vazquez won a last-minute penalty.

But it's remained a complete mystery why Bale was really taken off - until now.

Spanish outlet AS have revealed that Bale's substitution was actually because of an incident involving the Wales international and Cristiano Ronaldo in the dressing room.

During the break, Real's players were encouraging each other to do better in the second period, with Ronaldo leading the rally.

Ronaldo then turned to Bale, who wasn't getting involved, and asked him to show more aggression and passion. Bale simply smiled and didn't say a word.

Bale's reaction and general attitude in the dressing room disappointed Zidane, who had no choice but to replace him and told Vazquez to warm up.

Clearly there's an underlying problem. Bale hasn't seemed happy in a long time and by the sounds of it he isn't doing a very good job of hiding it.

Where he will be next season is anyone's guess right now, but staying at Real may well be out of the question.