"GOAT" - Gareth Bale reacts as he links up with Novak Djokovic at Ryder Cup celebrity all-star match in Rome

Former Real Madrid winger Gareth Bale has hailed Novak Djokovic as the GOAT after linking up with the Serbian tennis player at a Ryder Cup celebrity all-star match in Rome on Wednesday (September 27).

Djokovic, 36, is fresh off a fourth title at the US Open, becoming the first player - male or female - to win 24 Grand Slam titles in the Open Era. Widely regarded as one of the best players to wield a tennis racquet, the Serb has many other accolades to his name and is still going strong.

Ageing like fine wine, the World No. 1 was recently in action at the Davis Cup. He's 46-5 on the season, winning five titles and reaching all four Grand Slam finals, winning three (Australian Open, Roland Garros, US Open).

Meanwhile, Bale is enjoying his time post-retirement after a stellar career with club and country. The Welshman - who enjoys playing golf - has a reported handicap of two in the sport.

He recently teamed up with Djokovic in a Ryder Cup All-Star match at the Marco Simone Golf & Country Club in the Italian capital. Bale put up a picture of the duo on Instagram story and captioned it:

"Djoker Nole GOAT"

Here's a screenshot of the Welshman's Instagram story:

Screenshot of Gareth Bale's Instagram story

The Ryder Cup is a biennial team golf competition between Team Europe and Team USA, comprising 12 golfers from each team. Rome is hosting the 44th edition of the prestigious competition from October 1 to 3 at the Marco Simone Golf & Country Club.

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A look at Gareth Bale's career numbers

Gareth Bale

Gareth Bale, 34, is arguably one of the best Welsh footballers of all time. The former Tottenham Hotspur winger spent the most successful part of his club career with Real Madrid.

From 2013 to 2022, Bale played 258 games across competitions for the La Liga giants, contributing 106 goals and 67 assists. Although his game time dwindled towards the end of his stint, the 34-year-old is one of a handful of non-Spanish players to score over 100 goals for the club.

At Los Blancos, Bale won a plethora of top titles, including five UEFA Champions League and three La Liga titles. He also won four FIFA World Cup, three UEFA Super Cup and one Copa del Rey title.

Gareth Bale also had a distinguished career with Wales, bagging 40 goals and 22 assists in 111 games across competitions. He also starred for them at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, their second appearance in the quadrennial tournament and first since 1958.