da cassino： Whilst Luka Modric will play a major role for Real Madrid as he always does, Tottenham’s reunion with some old friends now playing in the all-white of a different European capital will be without the north London club’s most expensive ever sale, Gareth Bale.
da winzada777： Still injured, the Welshman hasn’t played since scoring a stunning volley and assisting Cristiano Ronaldo in Madrid’s last Champions League game, a victory over Borussia Dortmund. Despite some impressive performances since getting back up to speed in September, Bale really has been dogged by injury.
As sad as that is for a player of his unquestionable quality, it may well be that the Real Madrid man is learning about his own body and recovery prospects, something he might wish he’d done earlier.
Playing through injury is often seen as the ultimate sign of a player’s commitment to the cause. That makes sense: at the expense of your own physical wellbeing, you’re giving your all to the cause. It’s something that Gareth Bale has been praised for quite a bit, especially when it comes to playing for Wales – he’s been known to rush back into action for an international game, but has often done so for clubs games, too.
This time, he’s not done that. He has said over the past few months that he regretted rushing himself back too early after his injuries last season, eager to play a part in his side’s historic second Champions League victory in a row, and their first league title since Bale arrived at the club. That is understandable, of course, but not conducive to long-term health.
As a result, Bale doesn’t seem to be taking any chances this time around. The curse of a player who has been bought for as much money as he cost – upwards of £80m – is that every absence is treated as major news. He’s had that quite a bit, and fans have started to turn on him. Unfairly so, given injuries clearly aren’t something he wants, but equally, frustration is inevitable when you pay so much for a player who doesn’t play as often as you’d like.
The rise of Isco and Marco Asensio in the Real Madrid squad doesn’t help, either. Not only has their arrival as world class names meant that Bale is no longer guaranteed a place as an automatic starter, but the timing couldn’t have been worse. Madrid are now widely seen as the best squad of players in world football, and, for all its international appeal, it is still a fiercely proud Spanish club.
Their fans – like many fans of many clubs all around the world – would rather see a young, homegrown Spanish star turn out for a winning Madrid than an outsider like Bale rocking up and taking a place in the first team despite injury layoffs. An outsider by nationality, perhaps, but when it comes to the latest on-the-pitch triumphs he may well be seen as something of an outsider by performance, too.
They’ve started to turn on him. Bale has been whistled by the Madrid fans from time to time, and although whistling their own players is nothing overly new for the Bernabeu crowd – they’ve whistled Ronaldo before – it does make it seem as though a move back to the Premier League now looks fairly likely.
But, partly because there are so many good players at Madrid these days, we seem to forget just how good Bale is. If anyone can turn the fans around thanks to some truly world class individual performances, it’s surely him. It’s a shame that he won’t be given the opportunity to do so at home to his former club, welcoming them to one of the world’s most iconic stadiums with an iconic performance of his own. But he may turn out to be fit enough to do so at Wembley, another iconic stadium in which to perform.
Sadly, that’s unlikely, too, but it speaks to Bale’s maturity. He may be desperate to play, but it’s clear that he wants to make sure he’s fully fit and not about to injure himself again the next time he steps out onto the pitch in order to play.
And so whilst it’s a sad thing that we won’t get to see Bale star for Madrid against his former club tonight, perhaps we should see it as a good thing that he’ll hopefully be brought back properly this time.