Simon Jordan says he might’ve signed ace if he still owned Palace, but he was ‘poor’ at Spurs

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Speaking on the talkSPORT, YouTube channel, Simon Jordan has responded when asked if he would have signed Gareth Bale if he was still the owner of Crystal Palace.

Bale is one of the hottest free agents in football right now, and many clubs are vying for his signature.

Palace haven’t been linked, but a club of that stature may be hopeful of convincing Bale as his career winds down.

Jordan says that he may have considered signing Bale on a pay-as-you-play deal, but he has some serious reservations about the Welshman.

What’s been said?

Jordan spoke about Bale.

“If I were still at Palace? Gareth Bale troubles me, because he’s an immensely talented player. Ironically I think he made his debut against Palace when I owned them, and what a player he was,” Jordan said.

“He’s gone onto Madrid and been this enigma, and I can’t understand, having lived in Spain for 20 years myself, why Bale has fallen out of favour so much at Madrid and become this cariacature of a modern footballer. His season at Tottenham was poor, you can argue that he scored some goals and his goals to game ration was high, but if you look at the games he scored in, they weren’t that compelling.”

“If I was at Palace? First of all his agent isn’t someone I’m fond of and secondly I think Bale is a busted flush, I think you’d get a limited number of games from him. With Bale you’d get moments of brilliance, but in the Premier League you’d need more than that.

“If I had him on a pay-as-you-play deal and he wasn’t polluting the dressing room with what he once earned and what he once did, possibly, but I don’t think so, I don’t think that’s a fit I would have been comfortable with.”

Risk

Football dressing rooms are precarious entities, and if they become unsettled, things can quickly unravel at a club.

As talented as Bale is, he could also be a disruptive influence, especially at a club like Palace.

Patrick Vieira has built a solid core of young, hungry players at the Eagles, and if they were to be pushed aside for an ageing Bale who doesn’t truly care about the cause, there could be uproar.

Of course, Bale would be one of Palace’s best players, but at the same time, bringing in one star that could unsettle the rest of the squad is a big risk.

Any team that wants to sign Bale has to be wary.