Dimitar Berbatov has claimed that Gareth Bale’s return to Tottenham is simply not working and that he expects the Welshman to return to Real Madrid at the end of the season.
Bale has struggled for game time this season, having started just once in the Premier League since returning to the North London club.
Although Jose Mourinho has continued to back the Welshman publicly by claiming that he still has time to turn things around, reports indicate that he has warned the winger about his form in private conversations with him.
Speaking about Bale’s situation, Berbatov told Stats Perform (as relayed by The Daily Mail): “I was expecting a lot of him coming to Spurs, to shake things up and for him, Son and Kane to make it a trio upfront that can rival the Liverpool attacking trio, for example.
“For the moment it is 100 per cent not working. Hopefully, he can get back to 100 per cent and start playing. If not, in the end, it is an easy decision – he can go back to Madrid.”
Berbatov, who was teammates with Bale during his first spell at Tottenham, insisted that Real Madrid loanee’s struggles cannot be put down to fitness any longer.
The Bulgarian added: “Whatever the reason [for his lack of games] Gareth Bale is injury-free now is because he’s on the bench for the team.
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“But he’s not playing from the from the first minute so it means that obviously, he’s not producing the right level of football Jose Mourinho wants from him, which is a shame because I like him a lot.”
Berbatov was a part of the last Tottenham side to last win a major trophy, helping the club to their League Cup triumph in 2008.
Spurs have qualified for the final of the competition this season and Berbatov believes that there is enough experience in the Tottenham dressing room to help them break their trophy drought this year.
“It doesn’t matter how [they get there] – the Premier League title, the cup, something – they need one so they can get that winning mentality going,” the former Tottenham striker said.
“Although they have a world champion in their team, the goalkeeper [Hugo Lloris], he should know how things are won – especially [having lifted] the World Cup.
“So him, Jose Mourinho, Gareth Bale – who is coming from winning mentality – will run with it. Those three are very important, they can teach them in a way how to win things and then get that winning feeling.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Even though most Spurs fans were not expecting Bale to come and immediately be one of our best players, it is fair to see that no one expected him to play as little as he has. Part of me feels sorry for him as the 31-year-old needs a consistent run in the side to build some momentum and show us what he can do. I am still hopeful that he can have a bigger impact in the second half of the season.
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