Gareth Bale is one of the most authoritative voices when it comes to Real Madrid. With five Champions League titles, four Club World Cups, three European Super Cups, three LaLiga titles, one Copa del Rey and three Spanish Super Cups, the Welsh football legend knows very well what went on in the engine room of one of the best teams in the history of football.
That’s why, from the talk on the podcast Stick to Football Magazine with Ian Wright, Gary Neville and Paul Scholes, the Real Madrid number 11 left many statements to analyze about Carlo Ancelotti, Zidane, Cristiano Ronaldo, Sergio Ramos, among other topics. He even spoke of how close he came to joining Manchester UnitedThe Champions League and Madrid: “Just getting there I realised that they prioritise the Champions League. It’s difficult to be in Spain because these two teams (Barca and Madrid), maybe with Atletico, you know you’re going to win more than half. It’s not like the Premier League. It’s not that you take it easy, but we just prioritise the Champions League. The atmosphere in the stadium is even greater, for the fans, for the president, they put more emphasis on the Champions League”.
You knew that if you played against Barca or Bayern you would do a bit of tactics, with the rest it would be minimal, possession play, small goals, finishing with shots…
Florentino Perez: “He is the president and you knew that with his presence, just being there, it was like it was all bigger. In the end he is the president and you don’t want to let him down. He signed you, he put his trust in you and you have a relationship with him that probably doesn’t exist with owners of other clubs. He is in love with the game. He likes to be there, to be seen. It’s like a political office, just like the president of Barcelona or even Atletico. They want to leave a legacy. Obviously there are people below him, like Jose Angel, who is like the CEO. They control the whole club.”
The pressure and the press: “In training before games there’s a hallway full of media. There are newspapers that are just dedicated to covering Real Madrid. It’s not like in England. You know you can’t take your foot off the gas because they’ll go after you. You know you have to be on your toes because they’ll sell you and someone else will come along. I had to grow up very quickly”.
Scoring that goal in a final made a lot of people get off my back. I had signed for a lot of money, I never cared but…
Madrid’s glamour: “A lot of players went there and it was like a lot of glitz and glamour, but I was never like that. I just wanted to go there, play football and go home. I never wanted the circus that goes with it. I just wanted to play football and be with my family. If I had played a little less, probably the press and the fans would have attacked me less”.Controversy over leaving the stadium early: “I remember leaving a game. If we were injured we could leave 10 minutes before the end of the game, that was the rule. I left in the 82nd minute to avoid traffic and I was photographed. I thought I was doing the same as everyone else. I know I probably got more criticism than I should have, but I stayed true to myself”.
He played golf once every two or three weeks, the press created that kind of character
The Wales. Golf. Madrid banner: “That had nothing to do with me (laughs). There was a flag… The Spanish press created it. I played golf once every two or three weeks. The press created that kind of character. I never bothered. I had the rule of not playing golf 40 hours before the game. I was professional. It gets out of control because they put the fans against you”.Playing with Cristiano and Benzema: “We got on very well in the dressing room. We never had a problem. Karim was very calm, I got on very well with him, he kept himself to himself. We never argued or fought. We played well together. Cristiano and I were on the wing, with more spark, but he was holding it all together. I came in as the last piece of the puzzle”.Tactical work: “We didn’t do much tactical work… You look at the squad and they were all the best in their position. You also knew your teammates. Cristiano, for example, is not going to come back to defend much, so maybe I’m going to have to sacrifice myself a little bit. The coach will obviously give you some things to do, but it’s not rocket science”.
Cristiano would say otherwise (laughs). But yes, I would like to think that I was
His goal against Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final: “It was the first season in which I had received criticism. Scoring that goal in a final made a lot of people get off my back. I had signed for a lot of money, I never cared but…”.Cristiano Ronaldo: “When I started to see him (in England), he was definitely more of a winger. When I got to Madrid, I felt he was starting the transition to be a goalscorer. He was very motivated in training and in games just to score. That’s why he has so many records. I would say Ramos was the biggest leader. Cristiano had his ego and was a leader in his own right, but in terms of team leader, Ramos.”
Cristiano’s personality: “You have to assume that that is his drive (complaining when you don’t give it to him). He just wants to score. He’s chasing records, he wants to overtake Messi.”
Playing against Barca: “They were always the toughest opponents. Every time we played against Guardiola, at Barca or Bayern, you always felt like you were chasing shadows for 80 minutes and then you just had to counter-attack. I scored a couple of goals against them, not as many as I would have liked. We had the perfect team to counter-attack. Low block, calmness… We knew it and we accepted it”.Were you the fastest in the team?: “Cristiano would say otherwise (laughs). But yes, I would like to think that I was.”
Zidane: “He also played in Italian football and understood that defensive aspect. But he didn’t do too much… You knew that if you played against Barca or Bayern you would do a bit of tactics, with the rest it would be minimal, it would just be a normal training session, possession game, small goals, finishing with shots and that’s it. In the big games you do 15 minutes of tactics defensively rather than attacking and that’s it. He would join in training, especially when he was Carlo’s assistant and his legs were like spaghetti or jelly, he had that touch”.Difference with Ancelotti: “Carlo just had the best personal management. If you didn’t play, he made you feel like he was your best friend. He had that incredible ability to keep everyone together and happy.”
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