Tuesday, May 5, 2015
None of the criticism Bale has faced this season – from being booed at the Bernabeu in January for shooting instead of passing against Espanyol, to the trolling on Twitter, polls in newspapers showing respondents wanted him to be dropped and the whistles after defeat by Schalke in the last 16 Champions League home tie – has been fabricated.
But it has been exaggerated, taken out of context and used as evidence that a bid from an English club this summer is more likely to be successful despite Bale’s desire to stay and the determination of the president, Florentino Perez, to keep him.
Manchester United may well want to take him to Old Trafford this summer, but from Real's point of view, selling him makes no sense. There is no one Real Madrid could buy who has Bale’s qualities. The penetrating pace, dribbling, crossing and shooting adds an extra dimension to the way teams can play. The more options the better but every manager would make directness principal among them. Rob Bagchi
