In a recent interview with BBC Sport, Real Madrid winger Gareth Bale’s agent Jonathan Barnett has ruled out a summer exit from the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium for his client. Barnett has claimed that the Welsh wide player is ‘fine’ when he said (via BBC Sport), “Gareth is fine. He has two years left on his contract.
“He likes living in Madrid and he is going nowhere.
“He is still as good as anyone else in the team. It’s up to [Real Madrid manager] Zinedine Zidane.
“Of course here’s been interest but there’s hardly a club in the world which can afford him.
“It’s a great loss that he’s not in the Real Madrid team at the moment but he will not leave.”
Bale’s Mounting Frustrations At The Santiago Bernabeu Stadium This Season
The 31-year-old has endured another frustrating season at the Spanish capital after failing to establish himself as a regular member in Zinedine Zidane’s first-team. He has participated in 20 matches for the Spanish giants this term, netting three goals and providing two assists across all competitions which highlight his lack of consistency in the final third.
However, Bale deserves some credit for averaging 2.1 shots, 0.6 key passes and 1.1 dribbles per game in the La Liga and the UEFA Champions League this season (stats via whoscored). He might still have a huge role to play for Madrid this season if they can find a way to pull off a comeback against Manchester City in the Champions League next month.
The Cardiff-born talent has represented the Welsh national team in 79 matches while scoring 32 goals for his country thus far. He will once again carry his nation’s goal-scoring workload when the UEFA European Championship finals kick off next summer.
What Does The Welsh International Offer On The Pitch?
Bale has lost a yard of pace from his game, but he can still use his quickness to get to the byline and whip in some inviting crosses into the opposition penalty box. He can also strike the ball with a lot of power and dip, which makes him a potent threat from long range. However, the Welshman needs to improve his productivity in the attacking third as he hasn’t been able to consistently produce the goods for Los Blancos over the past ten months.
Should Zidane Retain Bale’s Services Beyond This Summer?
The claims made by Bale’s agent Jonathan Barnett should come as no surprise based on the dire economic conditions of the current market brought on by the COVID-19 crisis. It makes sense for the Welsh winger to stay put at Madrid and fight for his place rather than take a pay cut to go elsewhere where he likely won’t have a chance of winning silverware as frequently as he has done at the Bernabeu.
However, Zinedine Zidane will be better off shipping him out of the Spanish capital as he is not contributing too much on the field. Having Bale around will undeniably help Zidane maintain a strong squad next season, but getting him off their wage bill should be beneficial for the La Liga giants in the long-run.
