Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Back with a Bang: Gareth Bale Sends Clear Message Amidst Exit Talks

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Gareth Bale continues to ride the major football headlines.

The Welshman got back from his injury with a bang this week as he scored a winning goal for Real Madrid in a 2-1 FIFA Club World Cup victory over Al Jazira.

Bale spared Real Madrid’s blushes by sending Los Blancos into the final just seconds after his introduction last night. Welsh wizard was on the bench for the evening and was only brought in for the last ten minutes at the 1-1 score after Al Jazira took a shock 1-0 lead against the reigning European champions.

Bale latched on a ball from Lucas Vazquez and fired it home to follow up on Cristiano Ronaldo’s leveler earlier in the second period. The winning goal marked a fantastic return from yet another calf injury that kept Bale out of action since Real Madrid’s Copa Del Rey victory over Fuenlabrada at the end of last month.

Former Tottenham man will most certainly look to gain confidence after a difficult period which got him in the middle of whirling transfer speculations.

Finally Fit?

Gareth Bale once said moving to Real Madrid and winning the Champions League with Los Blancos was his childhood dream.

Welshman started living his dream back in 2013 when Florentino Perez broke the world record to sing then the Tottenham star for €100 million. Bale lived in a fairy tale at Santiago Bernabeu with his first couple of seasons at Real Madrid producing electric performances from the Welsh star.

Major goals in huge matches and a raft of trophies to set up on the mantlepiece came as a reward for his hard work and dedication. But yet, persistent and recurring injuries hampered Gareth Bale’s place in the team, disrupting the balance with the BBC trident Zinedine Zidane relied on.

The total of 19 injuries since signing for Real Madrid make a terrible count with Bale getting a chance to play in just 159 games in five seasons at Real Madrid. Just shy over 55% of the total games he could have been a part of, with each minute he spent on the pitch costing Real Madrid €13,539.

With his latest injury spell lasting 45 days, Gareth Bale – and Florentino Perez alike – will hope that this post-Fuenlabrada glitch was the last in line and that Gareth Bale will finally get back to his best at Los Blancos.

Question Marks Over Real Madrid Future?

The 28-year-old was approached by Jose Mourinho – perhaps a bit jokingly – to join Manchester United last summer, but Gareth Bale has been constantly linked with a move away from Bernabeu in recent months.

Red Devils once again feature as the top candidate and can be found at 4/1 betting odds to sing Bale during January, but the most recent reports have also seen his former club Tottenham join the chase.

Spanish media outlet Don Balon claims Spurs are willing to invest €60 million to get their fan favourite back to London but are rumours of Gareth Bale’s unhappiness and unsettlement in Madrid really to be trusted?

They are not – if Gareth Bale’s wide smile following the beating of Al Jazira is anything to go by.

Having scored that winning goal with his left foot – the same one that got injured in recent weeks – the 28-year-old forward was happy to celebrate the success with his teammates who, contrary to popular belief, Bale claims have been by his side throughout the injury plague.

“Every footballer goes through phases in which they have injury problems, but they’ve been right there with me, asking how I was doing in my rehabilitation process. It’s nice to be back on the pitch playing again. Now I just have to keep going.”, Bale told FIFA following the match.

Bale does not sound like an unsettled star and his goal was a clear message to all of those constantly moving him out of Real Madrid.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Milos Markovic


Formerly a Chief Editor at the largest sports site in Serbia Sportske.net, Milos Markovic is an avid football writer who contributes to a variety of online football magazines - most prominently Soccernews.com and Futbolgrad.com. His feature articles, editorials, interviews and match analyses have provided informed opinion and views, helping the football aficionados keep up to date on relevant events in world football.

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