Gareth Bale stays: What does this mean for Real Madrid?
Zinedine Zidane shocked many Real Madrid fans on Saturday as he named Gareth Bale in his starting lineup after a chaotic summer which saw Gareth Bale almost move to China and Zidane declare that the sooner the Welshman leaves, the better.
Since his move away from the Santiago Bernabeu has fallen through, it seems like there are no other suitable offers on the table for Bale and Zidane now knows that he will have to count on the forward for the upcoming season.
Even with all that has happened in the past couple months, Zidane didn’t let it phase him whatsoever as he gave the Welsh international a chance since Eden Hazard was injured and the player repaid his manager’s faith brilliantly.
In the 75 minutes that he spent on the pitch, Bale was running riot on his side. He helped Alvaro Odriozola in defense whenever it was required – which was more times than it should have been – while he looked dangerous almost every time he moved forward with the ball.
He got the assist after a brilliant move to Karim Benzema for the opening goal and could have gotten his name on the score sheet as well.
After the match, Zidane admitted that Bale will be staying at the club and will be counted on. The reason behind this change of heart is very simple: Not only was Bale not able to leave the club due to the lack of offers received (whether to him or the club itself) but also Zidane has not been able to get all the players he wanted such as Donny Van de Beek or Christian Eriksen.
Of course, the fact that Bale or James Rodriguez haven’t left could be the reason behind not signing anyone else in that position.
Nevertheless, this is where the team is now and this is the squad that Zidane has for the upcoming campaign unless there are some unexpected signings or departures between now and September 2.
The French manager has made it increasingly clear that he is happy with the current squad and if nothing changes then he is more than happy to move forward with the players at his disposal. In all fairness, even though it is an ageing squad, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a bad team as we witnessed against Celta de Vigo.
Next. Real Madrid player ratings from the win against Celta Vigo. dark
Gareth Bale is an asset to Real Madrid and even though he has been inconsistent at times during his years at the club, he is still someone who can completely change the game.
A lot has been said when it comes to the “Prince of Wales”, but once he puts his head down and focuses on his performances, not many players in the world can reach the heights that he can.
The season has officially begun and Los Merengues were able to get all three points on their first official match day. Let’s hope that Gareth Bale and the others can continue performing at this level as they embark on yet another physically demanding season.