Real Madrid: 3 takeaways from Gareth Bale’s Euro 2020

Coming into Euro 2020, few players had more to prove on a personal note than Real Madrid right winger Gareth Bale. Given his wages and the necessity for him to take a loan move back to Spurs last summer, Bale is in a situation where he may not have any suitors on the transfer market, meaning he’s expected to stay in Madrid.

Working with Carlo Ancelotti instead of Zinedine Zidane could help Bale, though the Welshman was also in a position to boost his stock to other teams around Europe with a strong tournament.

Now that Wales have been knocked out of the Round of 16, it’s time to evaluate Bale’s Euro performance. How have the Euros impacted his valuation?

Gareth Bale can still be effective

Gareth Bale had four appearances in the Euros, and while he didn’t blow anyone away in three of those matches, he was quite exquisite against Turkey. Now, he benefited greatly from the fact that Turkey were probably the least impressive team in the tournament and were hamstrung by some truly abysmal coaching decisions, but he did make delightful passes throughout the match.

Per WhoScored.com, Bale had five key passes and two assists with a pair of dribbles completed and two additional fouls drawn. Those are great numbers, as Bale was something of a wide playmaker, floating early balls into the box and sending teasing passes behind the Turkish defensive line.

Bale, as we saw this past season at Spurs, is still capable of finding the back of the net. And against Turkey and Italy, he showed he has the veteran know-how to draw fouls and find teammates. His playing style has necessarily changed, but he showed he can remain a quality player in this different role.