Then at Tottenham, Bale might not have realised that he would reap revenge in the best way possible five years later.
In November 2012, the Welshman scored a beauty of a free-kick against Liverpool from 25 yards out, leaving Pepe Reina motionless and helpless to give Spurs a 2-0 lead.
However, it would be a moment quickly forgotten when Liverpool pulled one back - via Bale's forehead.
After Steven Gerrard headed towards goal from a Jonjo Shelvey corner, Aaron Lennon cleared the ball off the line with some venom.
Unfortunately for him, Bale was stood about a foot away and felt the full force of Lennon's clearance in his face as the ball cannoned back and into the net comical yet bizarre fashion.
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The Sky Sports co-commentator could not hide a Freudian slip when he said: "Well the first ball is won by [Daniel] Agger and then Gerrard back across goal.
"Aaron Lennon on the goal line thinks he's done a good clearance.
"But unfortunately, it hits his colleague Gareth Bale straight in the fails - face! Nothing Bale can do about it."
It was a unique feat as it meant Bale became the second Tottenham player to score at both ends in the same match in the Premier League era after Chris Armstrong did it against Arsenal in March 2000.
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Speaking after the match, club captain Michael Dawson gave his thoughts, saying: "To give the goal away in such a freak incident… not the best performance but we got the three points."
It is true that Bale was powerless during the freak own goal, simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time as the ball ricocheted off his face.
But six years later, now at Real Madrid, the forward would have his revenge - scoring arguably the greatest Champions League goal of all time.
Real Madrid took on Liverpool in the Champions League final in Kiev and Bale was shockingly named on the bench.
After Loris Karius' error saw Karim Benzema score just as Sadio Mane equalised, Zinedine Zidane sent on the Wales international to wreak havoc - and he made an immediate impact.
Less than two minutes later, Bale pulled off an outrageous bicycle kick from Marcelo's cross, lifting off the floor with jaw-dropping athleticism before connecting perfectly with the ball.
Karius had no chance as the ball sailed into the back of the net, leaving fans from both sides stunned after witnessing a piece of footballing history.
But Bale was not done yet as 20 minutes later, he finished the contest.
He took a pot shot from about 40 yards to test Karius, who had looked shaky throughout the evening.
And Bale's luck came in, as the ball dipped and swerved leaving the Liverpool goalkeeper second-guessing, ultimately palming it into his own net.
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The winger's double handed Real Madrid their 13th Champions League title - and their third in a row.
It also meant that Bale's unfortunate own goal would become a forgotten moment when his name was searched alongside Liverpool, quite the double victory for him.