Bale should ´embrace´ Spain, advises Hughes

Mark Hughes has advised Tottenham star Gareth Bale to “embrace” the Spanish culture if he completes a move to Real Madrid.

Hughes – who spent two seasons at Barcelona in the 1980s – admitted he had not approached his time in Catalonia correctly and urged the attacker to learn from his mistakes if he moves to the Spanish capital.

Bale has been linked with a move to the Liga side throughout the close-season and a move to the Spanish capital appears close.

And the 49-year-old Stoke City boss believes he will enjoy the challenge if the move is completed before the transfer deadline closes on September 2.

“If it does go through I would just tell him to embrace everything about it,” Hughes said.

“I went with the wrong frame of mind in terms of thinking ‘I’ll go out here for a couple of years and then get back’, which is totally the wrong way to go about it.

“You need to embrace everything, the language, the lifestyle and if you do that it makes what you are doing on the football pitch a hell of a lot easier.

“I am sure if he feels it is the right time to go and he is mature as an individual to be able to cope with the demands that will be placed on him, then I wish him all the best of luck.

“It is a great league, he is going to an outstanding club, if that is what is going to happen, and he’ll enjoy every minute of it.

“When I went there I was a young player, but I was a young man as well, I hadn’t matured to the level that I needed to be able to cope with going from Manchester United to Barcelona.

“It was probably too soon for me, but if he feels confident that he can cope with the focus that is on him then I wish him well because he will enjoy every minute.”