What do you see happening with Gareth Bale?

Bastian

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I’ve lost a lot of respect for Bale to be honest. He has waste the last 2/3 years of his career. I realise he’s on a mega contract, of which no other club in the world will pay him, but there is more to life than football. He’s earnt millions and will still earn millions. To see him sit on the bench for 2 more years will be such a waste of his career. This should be a big lesson to the elite clubs.
Yeah, I just think he's clearly lost his passion for the game. And it will rightly impact his legacy. But he'll be very financially comfortable and probably won't care for the time being, regret may set in later, but he's got a lot of medals during his Real stint.
 

Josep Dowling

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What do you mean a waste of career? The dude's won everything there is at a club level. He was part of the team to win 3 CLs back-to-back, a feat unlikely to be repeated in our times. He is in the history books for all good reasons too. Does anyone point at Ronaldinho and say he wasted his career because he was done (at top level) by the age of 30?
Yes he has won a lot already. I get that. He’s a top quality player that isn’t fulfilling his full potential. That’s how I see it anyway. If he was at our club he would be getting slaughtered on here. It’s no different to the Rooney situation except Bale can still play at the highest level.
 

Mogget

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Yes he has won a lot already. I get that. He’s a top quality player that isn’t fulfilling his full potential. That’s how I see it anyway. If he was at our club he would be getting slaughtered on here. It’s no different to the Rooney situation except Bale can still play at the highest level.
He's 31, he's already fulfilled his potential.
 

horsechoker

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Just because he’s done well to get where he is doesn’t give him the right to sit there and do nothing now. In any other profession he would be sacked for not doing his job properly. I appreciate Real are largely to blame for this but make them pay out some of his contract and move on.
He has a contract though, and whatever he's doing doesn't violate that just like other people have contracts and if they don't break the terms of it then it's difficult to fire them without legal action. Bale could easily take Madrid to court if they break the contract which is most likely why they haven't simply sacked him.
 

sp_107

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He was so crucial to their 4 champions leagues victories so dont understand why they still dont like him. If someone wins 4 CL's for us we build a statue for him.
 

Mogget

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He coasted the last 2 years already. 29-33 years old is a big part of an elite players career these days.
Is it? Ronaldo and Messi are outliers.

I can't think of many other elite footballers, who have won the trophies Bale has won, who have remained at the top of their game after 30
 

JoeyJoJoJrShabadoo

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I genuinely believe he will continue doing what hes doing. Sit on the bench until they need him and obviously bust a gut when he plays for Wales.

When his contract ends he will be 33 but he will probably be in good condition considering the lesser amount of games. I could see him signing for a big club for smaller wages.

I respect that he is holding Real to his contract. He was willing to move on last year and they didn't allow it.
 

Oldyella

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Just as long as he doesn't end up with us I'm not too fussed. But was he really tripping people up while they were celebrating their title?? Quiet word in his ear might need to be had there!
 

T_Model101

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They thought they could feck him over like they did to Hierro, Casillas, Raul and many more of their legends
Fair play to him for sticking it to them.
 

MadMike

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Just because he’s done well to get where he is doesn’t give him the right to sit there and do nothing now. In any other profession he would be sacked for not doing his job properly. I appreciate Real are largely to blame for this but make them pay out some of his contract and move on.
He's doing his job. He's training, making himself available for selection and coming on when asked. He's got absolutely every right to do that. And football isn't any other profession, because in other professions you don't trade people like they're property.

You're just typing nonsense now.
 
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mad1max954

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Bale looks like a child but honestly, I Really don’t blame him. Madrid have treated him terribly and once again shown zero loyalty or respect to their star or former players.

the fact is Madrid renegaded on a deal for China. I don’t think bale should be the one looking like a cnut in all of this.

Genuinely, fair fecks to him for standing his ground. They can either pay him off in full or leave him on the bench.

look at it from the other side too, if bale agreed to a pay cut to join a club, Madrid would likely want a fee!

it’s karma and I hope he sticks his ground
 

adexkola

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Just because he’s done well to get where he is doesn’t give him the right to sit there and do nothing now. In any other profession he would be sacked for not doing his job properly. I appreciate Real are largely to blame for this but make them pay out some of his contract and move on.
You would have a point if he was skipping training and/or failing drug tests and/or bringing the club's name into disrepute. If Madrid signed him to a shorter contract then they would be free of him now. You can't eat your cake and have it.
 

Silverman

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Plays golf till his contract expires and collects 600k a week for it, pretty simple really.

Easy money :lol:
I hear this a lot with players and I do get it but I couldn't do that. If i was in his position, Id need to be giving my all and trying to achieve all I could in the footballing arena.
He already has enough money to do him a second lifetime.
 

Nytram Shakes

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Waits for his contract to run out, play sporadic minutes, with Madrid getting more and more anoid, but can't sell him due to his wages, then probably does a year or so in MLS or China then retires.
 

Van Piorsing

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Bigger legend than Giggsy my f*ckin arse.

Real don't want him and nobody else will take him for his demands.
 

Gehrman

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I can't fault anyone but Madrid for this. They pulled the plug on his move in the summer and have frozen him out. Bale isn't violating his contract, so it's up to them if they don't want to play him. Bit similar situation we have with Sanchez other than Sanchez has only ever been completely wank for us. Bale has 3 CL final goals.
 

Piratesoup

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I'm in camp Bale here. Real gave him a bloated contract that nobody was ever going to match. Everybody in their right mind would insist on them honoring this contract.
I actually hope he sticks to his guns and sits on their stands looking bored for two more years. Get that bread, Gareth. You might not have earned it, but they offered it to you anyway.
 

3KDré

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Is it? Ronaldo and Messi are outliers.

I can't think of many other elite footballers, who have won the trophies Bale has won, who have remained at the top of their game after 30
Off the top of my head, Vardy and Auba from this league alone. Lewandowski has had a ridiculous season at 31 too. Ibrahimovic as well. There are plenty. They may not all have won what he won but they all maintained their levels after 30.
 
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iHicksy

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Bale is doing absolutely nothing wrong. He turns up to training and the manager refuses to pick him. If i was going into work everyday and getting told sorry there's nothing for you to do, here's 500k a week for showing up though. I'd not turn it down either. It's not like he's refusing to train or play. He's doing his job, it's Madrid's problem that they gave him a huge contract made out he was the club's future then hire a manager who can't stand him. It's certainly not bale's. His family are settled and happy in Spain, he goes to training, does his job and enjoys playing Golf in his spare time. Not sure how anyone can have a problem with him.
 

adexkola

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Wales, Golf, Madrid is a hilarious line.

A lot on here would be fuming if Sanchez at any point said Chile, Boxing, United... But have to blame the club for getting into such ridiculous entanglements
 

Nytram Shakes

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Wales, Golf, Madrid is a hilarious line.

A lot on here would be fuming if Sanchez at any point said Chile, Boxing, United... But have to blame the club for getting into such ridiculous entanglements
yeah, I think football, on the whole, needs to start realising how big an issue wages are becoming in the game.
 

RyRoc

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Isn't he seriously good at golf? With the amount he allegedly practices , the fact that golfers can play at a high level well into their 40s/50s is there any legit chance he could pursue trying to be a professional golfer or is that disrespectful to those who have spent their whole lives solely dedicated to making it in that industry?
 

Black Rick

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Can his body even hold up to playing 50 games a season anyway? Even when he was in his mid-late 20s, his injury proneness was what cost him his place in the team.

The current situation of resting his legs, picking up ridiculous wages and then pulling his socks up every couple of months for Wales seems like the absolute ideal situation for him.
 

JoeyJoJoJrShabadoo

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I know Woodward earned all these jokes with his decisions over the years, but with Phelan and Ole I highly doubt we will see anything as daft as spending a fortune on Bale
 

Adam-Utd

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Wonder if Madrid will do a similar deal that we did with Sanchez, pay maybe 300/400k of his wage and let another club pay 200k of it to loan him?

Right now he's just wasting away and it's dead money for Madrid, you'd think it would be best to get rid of him and start a fresh elsewhere.
 

Jev

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I think he's been treated pretty poorly by Real, and I can understand him not giving a damn anymore and just running down his contract. It's a shame, though, to see such a great player not playing for no real reason.
 

Ronaldo's ego

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I’m sure the lad from the mighty footballing nation of Wales will be happy with 4 CL medals plus league titles and a few cups. He achieved a lot on the field and made a few quid. Don’t really care what happens to him as long as he doesn’t end up here.
 

clarkydaz

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Hope he stays to the very last day of his contract. If he does, i will get his face tattooed across my whole back. :lol:
 

horsechoker

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Isn't he seriously good at golf? With the amount he allegedly practices , the fact that golfers can play at a high level well into their 40s/50s is there any legit chance he could pursue trying to be a professional golfer or is that disrespectful to those who have spent their whole lives solely dedicated to making it in that industry?
Imagine he wins the balon d'or of golf
 

Sarni

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He will stick around until final year of his deal and then go to US or China. He may still have an episode in England at some point too. I don’t really think he will play at the highest level anymore though, but even in his current shape he could probably have a good game at a top club every now and again.
 

Maluco

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I’m sure the lad from the mighty footballing nation of Wales will be happy with 4 CL medals plus league titles and a few cups. He achieved a lot on the field and made a few quid. Don’t really care what happens to him as long as he doesn’t end up here.
It’s a fantastic haul, but will he be happy knowing that the fans of the club where he achieved that actively dislike him? (Even though they are hard to please at the best of times)

Maybe that won’t bother him, but it’s sad to have achieved so much and your career to descend into ridicule when you could still be cementing a legacy elsewhere and making them look stupid for treating you as they have.

Everyone looks bad and the league win has meant nothing to him based on the reaction videos.

He may feel like he has nothing to prove though and just point to his medals.
 

Bilbo

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Fair play to him. I think there's a feeling amongst football fans that all players should do everything possible to carry on playing and maximise their legacy, and it seems to be a feeling that Bale obviously doesn't share.

He's won a ton of honours, and he's getting paid a fortune to effectively do a bit of cardio work every morning. Absolutely dream life.
 

jeff_goldblum

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Frankly it's nice to see Madrid finally get some comeuppance for the way they treat the players who have brought them success. It's not Bale's fault Madrid made a stupid financial decision.