Gareth Bale returns to Tottenham a different player, but his Spurs sequel could be another thriller

1/14
Ben Hayward16 October 2020

Almost seven-and-a-half years after his previous appearance in a Tottenham shirt, Gareth Bale looks ready to feature again for Spurs.

The Welsh winger’s last contribution for the north London club in an official game was a spectacular late winner against Sunderland on the final day of the 2012-13 season.

It was magical moments like that one which convinced Real Madrid to pay a world-record fee of £85.3million (€100m) for his services that summer. But much has changed since.

Bale’s career at the Santiago Bernabeu has seen some incredible highs, including four Champions League wins and three goals in those finals.

Amid all of the success, though, there have also been injuries, inconsistency, a difficult relationship with fans, the media and coach Zinedine Zidane.

Getty Images

In hindsight, he should have left with his head held high after scoring twice – including that sensational overhead kick – against Liverpool in Kiev

Nothing much has gone his way since and he has been gradually frozen out since Zidane’s return to Madrid last year.

As Real racked up 10 straight victories in LaLiga after lockdown, Bale was a peripheral figure. The Welshman played only twice in that period and did little in those appearances to prove he warranted more game time.

Some of his antics on the sidelines saw him accused of being unprofessional. Certainly, by that point, he had become unmotivated.

“My energy level seems to have gone up, pulling on that Spurs shirt again,” he told Sky Sports recently.

“I just want to enjoy my football. In Madrid it was a bit flat for a while. You can tell when players are not happy. It’s difficult to play at your highest level.”

In Pictures | Bale is back! Welshman completes Tottenham return

1/16

Bale has not played at his highest level for some time, yet the same could be send for James Rodriguez, another player marginalised by Zidane. The Colombian has been a revelation since leaving Madrid to sign for Everton.

Unlike his former Real team-mate, Bale was always more of an explosive player. At the age of 31, he retains great pace, but has lost some of that energy in recent seasons.

“I’m not the 20-year-old who sprints down the touchline every two seconds,” he said.

“I think when you get older, you realise that you have to manage yourself a little bit more, and pick the right moments to go rather than every single time when you have a bundle of energy when you’re young. And you learn the game more.”

(Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty Images)
Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty I

His injury record will also be a concern. After missing 88 matches for Real Madrid across seven seasons, Bale arrived injured last month and has had to wait for his second Spurs debut.

The Welshman suffered more than 20 muscle injuries in Spain and is at an age now where he could become even more prone to such problems. Tottenham’s medical staff will have an important role to play in that respect.

Meanwhile, his happiness on and off the pitch could also prove key to both fitness and form on his return to north London.

He returns a different player and man to the fresh-faced 24-year-old who departed in 2013, but if he can stay fit and rediscover his best in a mouthwatering attack alongside Harry Kane and Heung-min Son, Bale’s second spell at Spurs will be a sequel well worth watching.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in