‘He’s not ready’: Ex-Tottenham boss thinks Mourinho has rushed one player back from injury

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Former Tottenham Hotspur boss Tim Sherwood spoke on talkSPORT about Gareth Bale’s performance against West Ham on Sunday.

Spurs were in the driving seat after three first-half goals. Jose Mourinho brought on Gareth Bale for his second debut, and a victory for Tottenham looked inevitable at that point.

However, the tables turned completely in the final few minutes of the game. Fabian Balbuena scored West Ham’s first before Davinson Sanchez doubled their lead after an unfortunate own goal.

Manuel Lanzini ruined Bale’s return with a screamer in the final minute, but things could have been very different. The Real Madrid man had a chance to kill the game off when he went through on goal, but he shot wide.

Bale looked exhausted after that run and Sherwood believes that he still isn’t fit enough. The former Spurs boss claimed that the 31-year-old is not ready to perform at his highest level yet. But, when he is fully fit, Tottenham will be a real force.

He said: “Gareth Bale needs to get fit; obviously when he came on he had that one lung-busting run, his shot went past the post and when you saw his face after that he was struggling to breathe. He needs to get back to fitness; he’s not ready to start at the moment.”

“But when he gets back to fitness, alongside Son and Kane, there’s no better front three in world football, is there? Liverpool fans will argue, of course. If Jose gets a nice solid base behind those three, and you’ve got Hugo Lloris who is one of the best goalkeepers in the league, Tottenham have got every chance (of winning the league).”

Bale probably wasn’t fully ready for the game against West Ham, but he couldn’t have come on at a better time. Spurs were 3-0 up and cruising, and the scene was perfectly set for the Welshman’s second debut.

Things didn’t quite go to plan for Bale, but Mourinho should be cautious. Spurs cannot afford to risk the Real Madrid man if he isn’t fully fit. That would only increase the possibility of a worse injury; something that benefits nobody this season.