Gareth Bale caught the eye with his very first touches of the ball during his debut for Los Angeles FC as the side triumphed over Nashville Soccer Club 2-1 in the early hours of Monday morning.
Bale was unveiled by LAFC earlier in the month, having agreed to a one-year deal, which will help his preparations for Wales’ World Cup finals appearance in Qatar. The former Real Madrid ace was brought on for the final 20 minutes and made an instant impression.
A ball was zipped to him down the line and he controlled it neatly with his first touch before pinging off a devastating backheel pass with his second.
Bale, 33, said after the match: "I want to come in and do what I do, but fit into the team's style as well. It'll take a bit of time to get used to everything, but I'm quite switched on in terms of football, so I'm able to get up to speed quite quickly.
"Now it's just important to get some minutes, to try and get fit as possible as quickly as possible and it's about me trying to help the team as much as I can.
"You don't really get to see the heat on TV! The humidity was very difficult, even in the warm-up, it's something I'm not used to, but we all have to deal with these challenges.
"I was just excited to get on. The standard of football, even just watching it, has improved massively in the past or when I played against All-Star teams in the past. I enjoyed being on there. For me, personally, it's about getting minutes and building my fitness up.
"It's just getting used to the team philosophy. We are working on it every day in training. I am watching extra film on it, before and after training with the coaches. It's about getting up to speed as quickly as I can."
Also making his debut for Steve Cherundolo’s side was Italian legend Giorgio Chiellini. The defender, who has been capped 117 times by Italy, also recently joined the MLS side on a one-year deal.
Fans took to Twitter to rejoice in Bale’s little cameo, with one supporter writing: “Unbelievable first touches by Bale. Wow.” Another one added: “I can’t believe this… I really think Bale still has more juice in him.”
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