Tottenham Hotspur head coach Jose Mourinho has told Sky Sports that Gareth Bale has changed from the player he was back in 2013.
Bale returned to Tottenham on a loan deal from Spanish and European giants Real Madrid in the summer of 2020.
The 31-year-old Wales international winger moved to Madrid from Spurs back in the summer of 2013.
During his time at the Santiago Bernabeu, Bale won the La Liga title twice and the Champions League on four occasions.
The winger had injury problems and struggled for regular playing time in the last two years at Madrid, but, according to Mourinho, Bale is fully fit now.
The former Chelsea and Manchester United boss has raved about Bale’s commitment and professionalism, and he has also outlined how the winger has become a different player from the one he was in 2013.
Mourinho told Sky Sports about Bale: “Seven years is a long, long, long gap, so which player in the world is the same as he was seven years ago? Sometimes they are not better or worse, they are just different players.
“You look for example to Ronaldo and Messi and compare them with seven years ago. They play in different areas, they play in different positions. They transform their qualities to try to export their qualities in other responsibilities on the tactical system of their teams. I think it happens with the majority of the players. So for sure he is a different player.
“Every word that I told on Wednesday, I believe in them, because he’s working very, very hard, he’s improving, he doesn’t have one single injury since he recovered from the last one. He didn’t miss one single minute of any training session. To play 90 minutes is still hard, to play high intensity is still difficult, but he’s improving and hopefully he’ll be back to a better level soon.”
Important player for Tottenham Hotspur
According to WhoScored, Bale has played 18 minutes in the Premier League and 120 minutes in the Europa League for Tottenham so far this season.
The winger is not at his best at the moment, but with regular playing time in the next few weeks, the Welshman would get better.
An in-form Bale would enhance Tottenham’s chances of finishing in the top four of the Premier League table this season.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
