Gareth Bale could have been one of the greatest players of his generation. Memories of his slaloming run, jinking past an ageing Maicon and Inter defence, as Tottenham put the Italian giants to the sword remain fresh.
Very few could match his pace, and his dead-ball accuracy was the stuff of legends. Real Madrid do not often open their purse to make a player the most expensive in history if you had nothing to offer. For a British player, Real Madrid bucked a trend and splashed big.
Perhaps, he could have been on the same pedestal as Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, but it is what it is. Four Champions League titles later, and all that talk about Gareth Bale is what golf course he would tread next and when retirement will come?
In a nutshell, that is the story of Gareth Bale. A player who shone when the stars filled the night but watched his glow ebb when he was supposed to be the only star on a night. The heat from the exit of Ronaldo showed him up and regarded in many quarters as a pace merchant. Did Real Madrid get value for money?
There seems to be no motivation to star for Real Madrid these days. Los Merengues feel aggrieved for a player who has been through 35 injuries in nine years, missing almost two years of football and 140 matches. These days Gareth Bale is only thinking of the World Cup and retirement. With his Real Madrid contract coming to an end in June, he hopes to bag a short term contract to keep him fit for the World Cup.
Could Cardiff bail Bale out in the summer?
Bale would be out of contract with Real Madrid in the summer and hopes to secure a short-term contract that could see him retire after the Mundial.
Gareth Bale would leave Real Madrid when his contract expires on June 30. It would bring to an end a nine-year tumultuous romance between the Welshman and the Spanish giants. Especially given their interest in Mbappe, it is a no-brainer that Bale will surely leave the club.
Bale would want to remain match fit before the World Cup kicks off. The former Tottenham Hotspurs forward is seriously weighing up signing for Cardiff City if Wales qualify for the World Cup.
World Cup and retirement
Gareth Bale scored a stunning freekick to help Wales move to the final round of World Cup play-offs. The freekick was one of the two he scored as Wales beat Austria 2-1. The victory set up a date between Wales and either Scotland or Ukraine. With the faceoff between Ukraine and Russia, the tie between Scotland and Ukraine has stalled. Wales will have to wait till June to contest the play-off.
According to the Evening Standard, Bale may quit the game if Wales fail to qualify for the World Cup. If Wales manage to cross the hurdle presented by either Scotland or Ukraine, then a six-month deal with a new club is on the cards. Cardiff have featured seriously in the plan with the World Cup coming up in November.
Bale returned to Tottenham on loan last summer to maintain sharpness ahead of Wales’ Euro 2020 campaign. He recorded a tally of 16 goals in 34 games.
By :
Steven D. Thompson
